For the First Time
by Lara D
Summary: Majorly AUish. Daphne's teacher has a dangerous past and a possibly dark future. Who would've thought he had been a charming prince-like fairy that she had met as a kid? Know that everyone has hidden secrets- kept hidden for a reason. Oops, did Daphne find out too late?
1. Prologue and Chapter o1:

**A/N.** It starts now! :D Hiya! Welcome to my new DaphnexMustardseed story! Hope you enjoy! This prologue is kind of a songfic for "Forget You" covered by Cee Lo Green. Similarities between them are purposed. And yes –The title of this story is based on the Script's epical song…well, you know.

**RATED T** FOR VIOLENCE AND MILD COURSE LANGUAGE (not because Puck should be in anything lower, or T sounds better than K –none of that ridiculous stuff)

_Genre:_ Humor/Action/Romance

(Old) _Summary:_ "Oh hey, Mustardseed-err, Mr. Firay! Remember me? We met ten years ago when your brother's ex-fiancé killed your father! So, I had a question on last night's homework…" Your typical proscriptive relationship. Sort of. DxM (**Part of Summary credit goes to Evil Scrapbooker**) XD

_Originally Started:_ July 24 11:46 PM

_Ages; _Daphne: 17, Mustardseed (After Prologue): 22, Puckabrina: 22 and 23, Red: 17

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Sisters Grimm, nor this clichéd typed of story (Student/Teacher Relationship). This story is somewhat of a crossover, so storyline credit goes to **Jordan Lynde**, but characters aside from OCs (Ariana, Sage, Bryant, etc.) go to **Michael Buckley**.

* * *

><p><strong>For the First Time<strong>

_Prologue – Three Years Before_

"Hey!" He ignored her and walked faster. "Please!"

He felt her pulling at his arm, which he promptly pulled towards himself. "Go away." His voice was cold and hard. She flinched at the sound, and then sighed. He felt her let go of his arm, that being her response. The man decided that she had left, and breathed a sigh of relief.

That is, until he felt a force slam into his back.

They both fell onto the concrete floor with groans escaping their lips. "Listen to me!" the girl cried.

"Why should I? Rochelle told me what you were using me for," he said through gritted teeth. "And you already said you don't want to be together again. Just leave me alone."

"No!" she cried. "Not until you let me explain!" Tears were about to spill from her tear ducts.

The blonde man sighed, and pinched the bridge of his nose. He held a hand to the woman on the floor, which she took graciously. He brushed himself off and glared at her. "You have two minutes. No more."

She took a deep breath and looked at him. "What Rochelle said was true." Her companion let out a humorless laugh.

"I knew it."

"At the beginning, I used you for money," she admitted. "You know how poor my family was. We could hardly afford to buy an apartment! So, I really did need some money from you." The man shook his head, his anger blocking out his sadness. "But then, I really did start to love you."

"So? What will the difference be? After what Bryant did to you, there's no way you want to be with me again."

The girl nodded. "I know, I know. But I wanted you to know that I did love you, and I still do. I'm just not _in love with you_," she took a deep breath after saying that. "I wanted to tell you before I left."

He sighed. "I think you leaving is for the best." He turned to walk away, but she pulled him back. The next thing he knew, she was pressed up against him in a hug, her head in the crook if his neck.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm so sorry." The man froze, but then he hugged back, silent tears streaming down his face. After retracing her hands from the embrace, she kissed his lips softly. When she pulled back, she smiled sadly. Their eyes locked on each other, his clear blue eyes against her wide, hazel eyes.

"Bye, Matt. Please forget me." She started to walk away. Mustardseed stared at her as she did.

"Goodbye." He didn't know how trying to forget someone could hurt so badly.

**Chapter 1: The Action Starts Here**

_Present Time-Three Years Later_

"Cash or Credit?"

"Cash." Daphne was about to hand her a $100 bill, when the bored man behind the counter stopped her. "What's wrong?"

"We don't have change, sorry. Will credit be okay?" Daphne hid her anger and smiled at him, handing him her Visa Card. He quickly swiped it and gave it back to her, along with her groceries. "Have a good night."

She frowned as soon as he had said it. Flatly, she said, "Thanks."

She didn't have to be reminded it was night already. Daphne Grimm was supposed to have gotten the groceries in the afternoon that day. But because Facebook literally makes time fly by, she had looked up from her desktop to see that it was 6:00 PM. Her sister couldn't have gotten the groceries because she was at work at that time, and so was her husband, Puck.

_Damn, I really should've gotten them earlier_, Daphne thought, eyeing the bags in her hands.

It was very common for a teenage girl to be assaulted at night when they were alone, but Daphne Grimm wasn't ready to become one of them. Sure she knew little karate-thanks to Snow White, but she hadn't been in Ferryport Landing since three years ago, so her skills were lacking practice.

She was glad that her apartment was only a few blocks away. At the moment, her dad was late working while her mom and Basil were in Ferryport Landing to see how Uncle Jake and Granny Relda were doing since they were living on their own in the Grimm household. Mr. Canis had decided that he would live meditating for the rest of his life, and would continue to help the Grimms left in Ferryport in any way he could until he died. As of the moment, he was living in the woods behind the Grimm household's backyard. Although, the space was smaller than it had been years before. Ever since humans were let back into town, Ferryport had gotten bigger, so part of the woods had been cut.

Daphne missed Ferryport clearly. It was much livelier there and she knew most of the people in the town. She decided to block out her thoughts of her old home by walking faster. She was almost to her apartment, when she heard a gruff voice yell from behind her-the alleyway she had just past.

"Fight back, you idiot!"

_What should I do? Peek or no peek?_ Too late, Daphne had already looked. She was a very curious Grimm, so why shouldn't she?

There were seven men in the alleyway. Three were blocking the exit, while one was being held by two men, and another standing in front of the grasped man.

Then she heard a smooth chuckle come from the man being held, "I don't want to waste my energy on you and the others, Jack. It would be pointless."

_What? Wasn't he scared the least bit?_

Daphne tried to get a good look at the man, but his back was turned, facing the exit of the alleyway. All she knew was that he had messy, blonde hair.

"Shut up, you betrayer! I'm going to beat the shit out of you," Jack said. Daphne winced at his voice. He sounded very threatening.

"Go ahead, it's not like weak hits from you will harm me," the man with the smooth voice said, even letting out a small yawn.

_Oh my goodness!_ Daphne looked at them with wide eyes. It was unbelievable that this guy wasn't intimidated by them!

"Suit yourself!"

One of the men who was guarding the entrance took a bat and raised it above his head, and started walking towards the captive guy who had his back turned.

Daphne didn't want to watch at all. Before she could even go over her plan, she yelled, "Wait!" All heads -with the exception of the blonde man- turned to her. The three who were blocking the entrance walked backwards until they were behind Jack. The two men's grip on the blonde man seemed to lessen for some reason; probably just because it was only a teenage girl instead of some cop.

"What are you doing here?" The dark haired man, Jack, asked. One of his men said, "I think she overheard our conversation."

Daphne wasn't able to speak.

"Well, miss. You can be the first to watch the first punch to this man's pretty face."

"You think I'm pretty? That's cute." The blonde man sounded as if he was smirking. Jack was about to punch him when Daphne hit him over the head with her groceries. Because the blonde man wasn't being gripped very tightly, she grabbed his hand and yelled.

"Run!" They started sprinting towards Daphne's apartment. _Oh my gosh, I'm freaking out._ Daphne had dealt with dragons, evil Everafters, pirates, fairies, Yahoos, and other scary creatures, but she was still deathly afraid of thugs-especially because she was now a teenager.

The two waited by her door while Daphne fumbled with her keys to open it. The cold air was turning her hands numb. And to make it harder, the plastic bags were digging into her skin, turning it red.

Once she did, she shoved him into her house, and slammed the door shut before leaning against it. Daphne sighed, and then peeked out the window. She sighed in relief. She stayed against it. _Thank goodness they're gone. If they had followed me…_ Daphne shook her head with a smile. She was happy they weren't after her.

"Are they gone?" Daphne jumped when she heard his voice. She had forgotten someone was here.

"Yes, thankfull..." she turned around to face him, and the words died in her mouth. Her eyes widened.

This was a clichéd line, but he must've been the handsomest guy she'd ever seen. She eyed him. He had nice white blond hair, and he had icy blue eyes. He could've been a male version of Sabrina!

Daphne glanced back at the man's eyes. The shade of blue seemed so familiar, but she knew they had never met.

At least, she was sure.

His eyes widened when he saw her too. They stared at each other for a while. The blonde man mumbled something quietly.

"What?" Daphne whispered. She saw his eyes lower in disappointment, and then it quickly went away. He shook his head.

"Nothing." He looked at the window again, "They're gone, right?"

She glanced at it too, "Oh. Yeah, they're gone."

He started walking towards the door, "Well I guess I should be going."

"So soon?" As soon as the words left her mouth, she covered it and blushed. The strange man looked at her with an expression she couldn't describe, but then it was replaced by a small smile.

"I don't want to impose."

"You wouldn't. But, if you have to, I won't keep you waiting." She walked him towards the door.

He smiled at her, opening the door, "Thanks, but next time, don't go saving guys in alleys. I don't think that's your forte." He patted her head softly and was almost out the door when she said,

"Wait! What's your name?"

He pulled his head back in the house quickly and said smirking, "Secret. That's for me to know and you to never find out." Then he was gone.

After staring at the door for a minute, Daphne shook her head. She then fell onto the couch with a dazed look on her face.

_What just happened? _It wasn't everyday she would rescue a handsome guy from a group of thugs on a Thursday night! But in a sense, she liked it. She really did. She could feel an adrenaline rush in her veins! Daphne Grimm hadn't done anything this wild since she left Ferryport Landing-and that was saying something. New York City was supposed to be filled with crazy things. After all, she had discovered that dwarfs, pirates, Yahoos, and other creatures lived here for years and she had never known until they came back years ago!

She shook her head again, smiling. _I hope I see him again…_ The man seemed like a very nice guy; he was charming her already, and she had only met him for a few minutes. But his eyes…

Daphne Grimm couldn't get his eyes out of her head. She felt a sense of déjà vu just seeing those eyes. _Maybe it's because they look like Sabrina's?_ she asked herself, and then she shook her head. _No, Sabrina's are darker, like indigo. The stranger's were much lighter. _She groaned aloud.

"Why do they look so familiar?" She sighed, running a hand through her dark hair. "You know what? I'm just going to stop thinking about him." She nodded to herself and turned on the TV.

"I think I'll start watching my re-runs now..." But still, she couldn't get him out of her mind.

_I really do hope I see him again._

* * *

><p><strong>AN.** Exciting, huh? This will BLOW YOUR MIND! Just sayin'. :D Anyways, hope you liked it! Oh and I'm not posting anymore until I finish Daphne's Distraction, Muahaha!

Sorry there was no linebreak between the prologue and the first chapter -I tried. I tried for about 20 minutes. FF is very stubborn. Oh well. And also, sorry this is short-I realized writing 14 pages (on Word) for each chapter is really hard. So, everything chapter will be about 7 or 8 pages long-really, it depends on how I'm feeling. To end this…Keep reading Daphne's Distraction everyone! Love all your reviews and I hope you love this story!

~Lara


	2. Chapter o2:

**A/N.** I'm going to try and keep these short and simple. But anyways, this may be boring. But I promise-the action will pick up either in the next chapter, or the one after that. :3

**To Evil Scrapbooker: **I sent you a PM, asking if I could change the summary, but you didn't reply. I had to change it because I got another complaint saying it didn't make much sense, so I'm sorry if you didn't want me to change it. But any other suggestions, I will keep forever! Oh, and the "Hey, Mr. Fae [changed to Firay]…" will appear in this story. Promise. Sorry again!

**Chapter 2: A Twisted Mystery**

Daphne yawned loudly entering the school. She lacked sleep because she had been watching re-runs of her favorite TV shows.

"Gosh, the holidays ended so fast, didn't they?" asked her best friend, Ariana Hernandez as she walked next to her.

Daphne grunted in reply.

The Hispanic beauty rolled her eyes. "You shouldn't have stayed up all night watching the first season of Warehouse 13 and that Japanese animation, umm, what was it called? It was Hakari Suzunika...?"

"Haruhi Suzumiya, A." Daphne looked amused at Ariana's guess. "And besides, yesterday was still my holiday. I wanted to preserve it as much as possible. Now let's head to your locker first since it's closer."

Ariana sighed loudly. "To preserve? That's so like you, D. I wonder if your friends back in Ferryport Landing were able to put up with you this much."

Daphne frowned, remembering. She hadn't told Ariana anything about fairy-tales, or that she was a descendant of the Brothers Grimm. Nothing magical related. After the war, Daphne and her family had moved back because the Scarlet Hand had lost and disbanded. Soon, all the Everafters agreed to live peacefully. Because they had kept that promise for about two years, Uncle Jake had decided to lift up the barrier.

And so, she was able to go back to a normal school, with normal people, and a normal life.

To say the least, it was boring. She missed everything from her past. But she missed her sister and brother-in-law the most. Because they were married and whatnot, she didn't get to see them often, especially because of their jobs-Sabrina as an undercover police officer and Puck as a jet pilot for rich people. Figures-Puck loved flying Sabrina around with his wings, now he could fly and get money for it! Needless to say, they were working and living leisurely. Daphne was happy for them; so were Henry, Veronica, and Titania. Daphne and Sabrina were pleased to hear that, but Puck was especially happy because it came from _Henry_. Which will probably never happen again.

"D? Are you listening to me? _¡Oye!"_ Ariana snapped her fingers in front of the Grimm girl's face as they neared Ariana's locker.

"What? Oh sorry. I was thinking of my sister."

"Oh, Sabrina? What about her?" Ariana pulled out her books from her locker.

Daphne shook her head. "It's nothing."

Ariana closed her locker and leaned against it. She looked suspicious, but said nothing. "Anyways, you heard anything from your mysterious stranger _amigo_?" Daphne had told her about the man she had seen in the alley yesterday on their way to school. Ariana was just as intrigued as her.

Daphne shook her head. "Nope. But as soon as I get word, I promise I will."

Ariana shrugged. "Okay. But you better not be hiding from me, girl!" The two took a quick stop at the office to get their schedules since the bell wouldn't ring for a few more minutes. Daphne quickly looked at the Monday's section as they headed back to Ariana's locker where they would wait for her boyfriend.

_Daphne Grimm Locker: 413_

_Homeroom: Ms. Watson_

_Period 1: Homeroom (Watson, Ms.)_

_Period 2: Math (Stevens, Mr.)_

_Period 3: Math (Stevens, Mr.)_

_BREAK TIME_

_Period 4: Spanish (Hernandez, Ms.)_

_Period 5: English (Watson, Ms.)_

_Period 6: Social Studies (Peterson, Ms.)_

_Period 7: Lunch_

_Period 8: Home Economics (Firay, Mr.)_

_Period 9: Science (Dayscall, Ms.)_

_Period 10: Science (Dayscall, Ms.)_

There was only one name she didn't recognize on the list_. Mr. Firay._ It must be some new teacher. It was an unusual last name. _Firay, Firay, Firay,_ Daphne repeated in her mind.

"Who's homeroom are you in?" Ariana asked excitedly.

"Ms. Watson's-the English teacher. What about you?"

"Aw man! I have Mr. Peterson-which I don't mind; he's hilarious. But we don't have the same homeroom _again_ this year!" Ariana grumbled. She then grinned. The Hernandez girl was a very bipolar person, so her mood changes were normal. "Oh my gosh! Did you hear? Ms. Canning had to quit because of her pregnancy?"

The Grimm girl frowned. "How is that good? You know she was my favorite English teacher!" Ms. Canning and Daphne could've been related; they both loved books and fairytales and both were sticklers for grammar. They were almost best friends, asides from the fact that Ariana was Daphne's.

Ariana rolled her eyes. "You only like her because you guys have the same interest. So Ms. Canning quit, Ms. Watson took her place, and the new teacher took Ms. Watson's old job. Anyways, one of the girls, Mira, told me that the new Home Economics teacher's _muy guapo_!" She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Daphne stared blankly at her. "You do know it's illegal to date him, right? And you do remember you're dating Josh, right?"

Her best friend waved a hand at her dismissively. "I'm not going to date or flirt with him! I'm just sayin' he sounds good lookin'..._mucho_ _bueno_." Her eyes suddenly grew wide and she let out a squeal, alarming the Grimm.

"What?"

"What if _el profesor nuevo_ is your mystery man?" She said excitedly.

Daphne shook her head. "No way! This guy was young!"

"And...? A lot if teachers are _joven_."

"Too young to teach," Daphne said. "It looked like he was fresh out of high school! And besides, dating a teacher is illegal, and kind of gross. Also, most -not all- teachers are old and bald."

"Way to ruin my imagination," Ariana grumbled, then smiled dreamily. "Well, I wouldn't mind if he was _muy inteligente y_ handsome! He'd be easy on the eyes."

"Who'd be easy on the eyes?" Around the corner came Josh, who greeted both girls with a smile.

"Your girlfriend's drooling over the new teacher and she hasn't even seen him yet. I'd watch Ariana carefully if I were you," Daphne commented, grinning like a maniac. As soon as the words left her mouth, the bell rang. "Oh shoot! I didn't get my books!"

Ariana tsked teasingly. "Tsk tsk tsk. You naughty girl! Chatting nonstop in the halls! Wha ha ha! Just kidding. _Adios_, D!"

"Bye, A. Bye, Josh," Daphne bid adieu to the couple, and ran in the opposite direction.

She noticed that there were a few stray students in the halls. Daphne found her locker and spun the combination quickly, getting her math books out. As she reached to put her backpack away, the locker door slammed on her fingers. "Oww!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," a familiar voice said. "Do you need to go to the clinic?"

"No," Daphne said, turning. "I think I'm fine, J..." She assumed it was Josh and his warm brown eyes, but instead...

Daphne met a pair of blue eyes. They widened in surprise when he noticed who it was.

It was her mystery man.

"Oh...hi," she said in a small voice, "It's you. Are you new here?"

The young man blinked. "Yeah. Um, could you help me look for...room 131?"

Daphne smiled to herself. The room coordinated with her locker combination. "Oh!" she pointed down the left where Ariana had gone. "Go down this hallway then take a right. Keep going until you see a dark green door, and you'll find it."

"Thanks," he said. He left without another word.

Now Daphne was excited. Her mystery man went to her school! She felt like biting her palm. She wondered if they would fall in love-like a highschool love story!

Daphne shook her head. She had been reading too many romance novels.

But even though she's read so many, Daphne's forgotten that there's a twist in every romance.

She closed her locker just as Ariana ran past. "Whoa! What happened?"

Ariana jumped up and down excitedly. "Did you see him-the new teacher? He went down this hallway and passed you! Goodness! He's _muy muy muy guapo_! Gosh, Mira left out some important details; _he's so handsome! _Anyways, did you see him?"

Daphne shrugged. "Nope. I probably wasn't looking."

"When do you have Home Economics?" she tried to grab Daphne's schedule. "I have it fourth period."

"I have it 8th period."

Ariana groaned. "You have to wait that long to see him?"

"Yeah. But guess what? My mystery man goes to our school!"

"No way!" she said with wide eyes. "You have to point him out to me at lunch!"

"I will," Daphne promised. They both ran hastily to their homerooms. When she entered, Daphne saw a few friends; not especially close ones, but she saw them nevertheless. She frowned as she noticed her mystery man wasn't there. Daphne had been hoping that the new student was just greeting the new teacher and would be in her homeroom. Oh well. She was still glad he had transferred to her school.

*•*•*

"Daph!" one of her friend's, Tom, called out, patting a seat next to him. "Sit with us!"

She gave a small smile. "Sorry, Tom. I promised Ariana I'd sit with her. See you later!" Daphne walked to where Josh, Ariana, and her other friends, Tina, Colin, and Willow, were sitting. She took a seat and smiled at everyone.

"Hi guys! So what did you do for the winter break?"

Tina, the chatter of the group, smiled, and started her very long story about her trip to Italy. "Okay! So first we went to my grandma's house and slept there. Then we went on a gondola ride through the streets the next day..."

Daphne zoned out after that, looking around. There was no sign of the new student, and she sighed.

"Daphne..."

Maybe he was just sitting outside. The boy was new, so maybe he was sitting out with some friends he made. She sighed again.

"Daphne!" Willow said, shaking her shoulders. "Gosh, woman! You're such a ghost sometimes."

"Huh? Why a ghost?"

"Because ghost moan and sigh!" she said. "_Ooooh! Ahhh! Sigh!"_

"When I sigh, I do not say sigh," Daphne retorted.

"Sigh," Ariana said, slumping her shoulders forward on the table. "I wish every period of the school day was Home Economics..."

"You're still hooked on that?" Daphne looked at her in disbelief. "He's just a teacher!"

Tina, Willow, and Ariana looked at her with blank expressions. _Oh boy_, Daphne thought.

Tina's eye was twitching. "Just. A. Teacher?"

Then Willow exploded, which never happens since she's the quiet one. She stood up with her hands on her hips. "Daphne! He the funniest, most handsome, most good looking, most nice teacher in this entire school-no, world! And you're saying _he's just a teacher_?"

Daphne scolded her. "It's 'nicest', not 'most nice'. You know how strict I am with grammar!"

Willow looked as if she wanted to strangle her. "Holy tofu." She collapsed in her seat. "You're so hard to talk to."

"Hey, D," Ariana said suddenly, putting her hands under her chin and smiling.

"Hmm?" she said, looking at her now.

"Are you planning to waste that food on your tray? The bell rings in like, five minutes." Daphne looked down at her tray. She had a sandwich, salad, fruit, a bottle of Gatorade, two crunch bars, and a small chocolate cake. All untouched and looking very delicious.

She scarfed everything down in three minutes, obviously. Everyone watched with awe besides Josh. He sighed. "You do know that if you eat too fast, your stomach will start acting up?" Daphne shook her head and grinned proudly.

"I've scarfed down food for my whole life without puking...well, except for that time I tried my brother-in-law's pizza. Ergh. Robin is not a good cook." She shuddered. "Well, my stomach feels a little weird right now...does anyone want to lend me a bottle of water?" As she took the bottle of water, the bell rang. Daphne groaned. "I think I'll just go to the bathroom in case." Her friends snickered, and said goodbye as she walked slowly out of the cafeteria.

She sat on the toilet seat, but not puking. The feeling had gone away once she had gotten out of the cafeteria. _Guess I just needed some air_. Daphne then directly went to her locker to get her books, and saw that she was the only one who was in the hallways. _Oh shoot. I'm going to be late for the so-called handsome teacher._ She grumbled. _I might just get detention for it...detention on my first day of school!_

Daphne ran all the way towards Home Economics, and stopped to take a breath. Hopefully, the new student was in this class with her. She smiled at the thought. What if they sat next to each other?

She was giddy and opened the door, walking in with a small smile. "I'm sorry I'm late, Mr..." Daphne blinked at the handsome boy. It was the guy who slammed her locker on her fingers! _Yes! He's in my class!_

He blinked back, but then look at the piece of paper in his hands. "Oh. You must be Ms. Grimm. Take a seat please. And don't make it a habit of being late. I'll let it slide since it's your first day." Mr. Firay offered a kind smile.

Daphne's heart dropped in her gut. Her mystery man was not a _student,_ but her _teacher_.

_That was so twisted!_ she thought to herself. _Cruel fate! Why did you make him my teacher?_

**A/N. **So yes! Her teacher is a hot guy! Hahaha…

Yeah. Some of you are probably like _Eww. That's so gross. She probably will only get together with him for grades. And he's probably like seven years older! Eww! This author is so weird!_

Well not quite. Yes this will turn into a Student/Teacher story (**Turn around right now if you can't handle that**) but it will not be your typical one. Yes a high school story, yes a forbidden love, but no to your average one. This will probably the most action filled story I've ever created. But if you choose to miss out on that, I certainly have no power to control you. ^^ And no, she does not use him for grades. That's just…wrong.

Sorry it's short. I have a book report on a book called _Sounder _due in a week and my teacher gave us the assignment Thursday. Not much time for an eleven paged book report. -.-' Also, science fair's back up and running. Gawd. Well, at least my project is something I understand.

**PLEASE READ: **Okay, I need help for a Science Fair Title, so _Imma _going to tell you guys what my project is. _Well, _my piano teacher told me that most people who know how to play a musical instrument/can read sheet music are in high math, like math geeks I suppose is another term. So I said, _Really? _And that's my project-to find out if music really does help your…left parital lobe (I might be wrong on which side math functions in your brain). So what I'm going to do is have two groups –people who can play a musical instrument/read sheet music and those who can't- and they're going to do a bunch of math problems, and when they finish, I stop a timer, and see which group seems to finish the fastest. So…any title suggestions? If you give me some, I WILL MAKE A ONESHOT FOR YOU AND LOVE YOU FOREVER (in a friendly way)!

Shall-ish update-ish soon-ish!

~Lara

PS. He -Mr. Firay- will not be seven years older. That too old for a seventeen year old girl.


	3. Chapter o3:

**A/N.***cowers* Don't shoot me!

Anyways, I'm sorry this was a slower update. I've already explained the reasons why that is. :3 Am very busy with Science fair, school, sea camp…

Speaking of Science Fair…

Thank you to everyone who gave me Project Title Suggestions! They really made me happy to know that you guys helped! ^^ I finally thought up one, though. You guys ready?

*dun dun dun dun* **INSIDE YOUR MIND: THE MOZART EFFECT!**

...Cool right? :3 Also, those who sent me ideas, what one shots would you like me to write? Yes, I did say the winner would get a one shot, but was there really a winner? No. SO! PM me with your specific requests!

Oh, and how does everyone like the new summary? Better explaining? But at the same time mysterious?

**ALSO: Majorly important:**  
>I will not update this weekend due to the fact that I will be in the Florida Keys for Sea Camp. Sorry! But guys-I'm super excited! Three days with no siblings to nag me, and I won't have to do laundry or anything! ^^ Heehee!<p>

(**After you have read the chapter, read the A/N after that too. I just noticed something and the important-ness of it is in that other A/N)  
><strong>  
>Read your long chapter-I owe you guys that much. ^^ (It was like, 13 pages long on Word) Anyways, enjoy your chapter!<br>**  
>Chapter 3: A…Romantic Encounter?<strong>

Daphne took the only available seat in the class-right in front. She stumbled to the seat, earning a few snickers from her classmates in the process.

Mr. Firay cleared his throat. "Okay. As I was saying, I'm Mr. Firay-no not fairy, that's just girly, and this is my first teaching job." The student chuckled. _He's a pretty funny guy_, Daphne noted as she looked at him. "Any questions?"

Some girl raised her hand. "What's your first name?"

"Matt, Mattheis. But none of you can call me that."

A boy asked, "What's your favorite animal?"

"Dogs. Cats are pests to me." Daphne frowned. Cats were equally as awesome! But no one seemed to mind that their teacher detested cats.

Another boy put his hand up. "Are you single?" Everyone went into a fit of laughs.

Mr. Firay cracked a grin. "Yes, but I'm not into men." The students started laughing again.

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-two." Daphne looked surprised. He was only four years older! How was that possible?

"What's your favorite food-since , you know, you're our Home Economics teacher?" said one of the _it _girls, twirling her hair around her finger.

"Hmm...I really don't have one. I like most foods. Probably Thai food. I love culturistic foods." Daphne narrowed her eyes at him. _Did he just make up a word? 'Culturistic'?_ That was her job! _So _olive of him.

"Favorite sport?"

"Basketball."

"Any siblings?"

Mr. Firay casted a small, quick glance at Daphne -who was staring at him with narrowed eyes- then looked back up. "Well, I have a brother who's married. So that's really it."

"What's his name?"

"My brother? Peter." Daphne looked suspiciously at the teacher when the corners of his lips turned into a dazzling smile. "And if you're about to ask, his wife's name is Bria." Daphne mentally 'awwed'. _Bria was such a pretty name. It almost sounded like 'Brina..._

Daphne shook her head. _Naw. It wasn't Sabrina and Puck._

"Did you live here as a young boy?" someone asked. Daphne noticed it was a boy named Daniel.

He shook his head. "No, I moved from Europe. My parent's actually performed in the Global Theater where Shakespeare had his plays." Everyone 'oohed'.

"That's so cool! When I grow up, I plan to become an actor," Daniel said excitedly.

Mr. Firay smiled. "That would be a good career."_  
><em>  
>"Where do you live?" the same boy who asked the single question said. Everyone laughed.<p>

Mr. Firay rose an eyebrow at him. "_You trying to stalk me, bro? _Haha, just kidding. I live...how do I describe it? You all know where the Hans Christian Anderson statue is? Well I live like right across from it." Daphne 'pffft'ed. Right across from that statue was an abandoned warehouse. She could tell he was lying.

"A problem, Ms. Grimm?" the handsome teacher asked. All attention was on her now.

Daphne turned red. "No, Mr. Firay."

He nodded. "Good. Any other questions?"

"Favorite color?" someone offered.

"Black and blue."

"Like a bruise," Daphne mumbled. Everyone erupted into laughter. Mr. Firay blinked at her. She looked at him. "What?"

He shook his head. "Someone just said that same thing to me a long time ago." Mr. Firay closed his eyes, then opened them smiling.

And that was how the rest of the period went. People asked Mr. Firay for the whole 45 minute class. When the bell rang, almost the whole class ran out of the classroom while a few students- emphasizedly, girls- crowded their teacher. Daphne had dropped a few of her things as students pushed past her, and was the last one to get out of the classroom_. At least nothing really embarrassing happened_, thought Daphne. _I'd turn so red-_

She spoke to late.

Daphne Grimm stumbled over a chair, and fell onto the floor with a 'smack'. She shook her head and red dusted her cheeks. She looked up to see Mr. Firay looking at her with an amused grin.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "What? No help?"

He rolled his eyes, and helped her up. "You're welcome. I suggest you head to your next class, Ms. Grimm."

"Bye, Mr. Firay."

He nodded as she disappeared from view, still red from her falling.

*•*•*

"Have a nice night," the store clerk said. Daphne grumbled a thank you.

Again, she had forgotten to get her groceries. Her father was working late again, and Sabrina and Puck were working far away because of their jobs so none of them were able to get the necessities.

The winter air was still as cold as ever, even with December gone. She frowned, stopping in her tracks. She was staring at the figure with coldness seeping into her veins.

He looked tall and muscular. Not buff, but very lean. The man was against his car with his mouth moving, possibly cussing. Daphne swallowed. Was it one of the men from the alley?

He shifted, and the moon reflected slightly off his blonde hair.

Daphne almost sighed in relief. "Mr. Firay!"

Her teacher froze, but then turned to her with wide eyes. "Ms. Grimm? What are you doing out here at this hour, again?" His scolding tone was a bit hard, but then it softened slightly.

Daphne held up her groceries. "I forgot to get these earlier. What are you doing here?"

"I was driving home when my car broke down," he said, not looking at her.

"Oh," she said with the gears in her mind turning, "Well, I have some gas in my garage. Do you want me to go get it?"

He nodded. "I'll come with you. It's not safe for a girl to walk around at night." At the end of his sentence, you could decipher a small tint of amusement. Daphne turned red, remembering the other night.

"Oh, umm, yeah," she said dumbly.

Mr. Firay pointed down her street. "It's this way, right?"

Daphne blinked. "Uh-huh." They began walking close. Her eyes darted around, looking for any suspicious looking men. The event that had happened before was now making her paranoid. "So," she said, trying to make a conversation. "What was that all about?"

"Hm?"

"The other night. Those thugs. Why were they after you?"

"Oh, them? Those guys are just stupid. Want to be caught up with the police, again."

Daphne's eyes widened. "Again? You've been hurt by them before?" Her teacher was involved with..._gangsters?_

He let out a bark of laughter. "Hurt? By them? I'll have you know I can beat the-" Mr. Firay suddenly stopped.

Daphne looked at him curiously. "What?" She was sure he was about to say 'beat the living daylights' or something like that. But she glanced around the street worriedly. "Are they back?"

His hair covered his eyes from revealing any emotion. "No. I just...remembered something." After that, all conversation was ceased.

Mr. Firay waited patiently while Daphne unlocked the door. He took a few bags for her and headed into the kitchen. She looked at him and said, "How did you know this was where my kitchen was?"

"I noticed it the other night, Ms. Grimm," he said smiling politely at her, as Mr. Firay put the groceries on the counter. The tension that was in the air disappeared. And was replaced with a not-so much awkward air.

"Oh." Daphne noticed she was being sort of rude and asked, "Do you...do you want anything to drink?"

He said, "Coffee, Ms. Grimm." Mr. Firay went into the living room to wait while Daphne mixed up the beverage.

When she came back out, Daphne saw her teacher pawing his way through the candy in the bowl. She placed the hot mug in front of him. Mr. Firay frowned. "Could I have some sugar?"

Daphne blinked. She already put some in there..."Okay." Once again in the kitchen, she located the small porcelain china and gave it to him, as well as a spoon. He grabbed it without hesitation, and was about to get a scoop when Daphne cleared her throat.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Can I have a thank you?" Daphne was getting partially annoyed at his lack of manners.

"Oh, thank you." With that, Mr. Firay started to scoop spoonful after spoonful into his mug.

Daphne grabbed the sugar. "Mr. Firay! That's way too much!"

"So?"

"You can get diabetes from that," she protested.

"But I like it this way," Mr. Firay said, sipping his mug.

Daphne laughed quietly. "Like a kid."

He blanked, then smiled politely, "I believe so."

After he finished, he sighed. Daphne was relieved. It was kind of uncomfortable doing nothing while he was drinking coffee-

"Get me some more."

Daphne's eyes widened. "What?"

He put his mug out to her. "You heard me, Ms. Grimm. More coffee."

She blinked. "No!"

"Do we have to do this the hard way?" Mr. Firay cracked his knuckles. Daphne scampered off into the kitchen with the mug. _Holy cow! The guy was some blackmailing demon_, Daphne thought. She ran around the kitchen looking for the ingredients frantically, not wanting to make him impatient.

She gave the mug back to her teacher filled to the brim with coffee. He smirked at her scared expression. Her face stayed that way until Mr. Firay finished the cup. "Make me some-"

"-more? No! I only have one more bag of coffee, and my dad needs that in the morning!" Daphne said defiantly.

Mr. Firay smirked even wider. "I wasn't going to say 'more coffee'."

She faltered, and stuttered. "O-oh. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have assumed-"

"-I was going to say make me some dinner." His smirk was now a full-fledged devilish grin.

Daphne stared at him with her mouth agape. "...Who are you?"

"I have a split-personality," he explained, then shooed her into the kitchen. "Now make me some dinner."

She blinked. "Really?"

"Yes, Ms. Grimm," he said in a 'duh' voice. "Now, dinner-"

"No! Why should I?"

He smirked. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. This isn't how a guest should be treated. You really need to learn your manners."

Daphne felt anger blaze inside her. "Manners? Says the handsome teacher who won't say 'thank you' or 'you're welcome' without someone telling them first!" Hot tears were threatening to come out of Daphne's eyes. _Stupid tears ducts_, Daphne thought. _Doesn't matter if I'm sad or mad; I'll still cry._

Mr. Firay was silent. Then he said, "You think I'm handsome?"

Daphne groaned. "Is that all you caught from my rant?" She felt like crying tears of exasperation.

Before that could happen, Mr. Firay placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I was trying to lighten up the mood."

Daphne was probably the nicest of the Grimms. Whether it was Charming or someone else the Grimm clan despised, Daphne Grimm couldn't help but accept their apology. "You're forgiven," Daphne said with a sigh, turned away. "I guess I'm just not the best host."

He blinked at her. "Hey, it wasn't your fault." It sounded as if he didn't expect her to forgive him.

She shook her head, and smiled at him. "It's okay."

Mr. Firay smiled. "I'm glad...but I still want some dinner."

Daphne sighed. He wasn't going to give up, was he? "Fine. But you're going to have to help."

He groaned as he was led into the kitchen. Daphne sighed inwardly. It seemed as if she wasn't going to have that whole spaghetti to herself tonight She pointed to some weird looking pasta. "Unpack those and get the bright orange can-that has the tomatoes. I'll get the green meatballs."

Mr. Firay blinked. "...green meatballs?"

Daphne laughed, tucking her hair behind her ear. "Oh, my grandmother makes some interesting foods..." When Daphne had been old enough to use the stove, Grany Relda made it her job to show Daphne how to make the...'special' dishes she had made for their family.

"Um, okay," said Mr. Firay. "This is some weird food, so you'll have to help me."

"I thought you said you liked _culturistic _foods?"

He peered at her. "I do. Where did you hear that?"

"In class. The students asked you questions, remember?"

"Oh, yeah. I didn't think you were listening..."

"I was."

He blinked at her, then stared at her with his piercing grey eyes. "Really?" He was looking at her intently.

"Y-yeah," she stuttered, looking away. Daphne was never really good at eye contact. Only when she was really confident about something. "Well, anyways. Start by cutting up the orange tomatoes...wait, take the skin off first."

He grunted in reply, their conversation temporarily disappearing from memory.

Daphne turned the stove temperature up and waited to for the water to boil. She glanced at her teacher, then her eyes widened in surprise. "Mr. Firay!"

"What?"

She grabbed the tomato and his hands. "Cut it away from you; not towards!"

"Well I thought the rule was different from normal food."

"Whatever. I'll help you; it'll be easy." It was -in fact- not easy. It seemed Mr. Firay was purposely messing up. Daphne hoped she would never have to cook dinner with him again.

Mr. Firay waited as she fixed the table with mats and utensils. Daphne placed their food in front of them and sat down. The blonde sniffed the food and blinked.

"What?" Daphne said, alarmed at his action.

"It actually smells good. Not what I was expecting -tomato sauce and whatnot- but it smells spicy and sweet-if that makes sense at all." He took a bite out of the meal and smiled.

Daphne grinned. "Well I'm glad." She reached for the salt, and saw that Mr. Firay was giving her a weird expression. "What's wrong now?"

"Salt and spaghetti?" he said in a dubious tone.

"Yeah. It goes surprisingly well with my grandmother's spaghetti." Daphne began to excesively shake salt onto her plate.

Mr. Firay's eyes widened and grabbed her wrist. "Whoa! Easy on the salt!"

"What? You use alot of sugar in your coffee," Daphne retorted. "And I like salt with this spaghetti!"

"Yes, I put alot of sugar into my coffee, but too much salt makes you die early."

"Oh and how would you know that?"

He rose an eyebrow at her. "I'm a Home Economics teacher? Duh?"

Suddenly, reality crashed down on Daphne. It felt like she had been punched in the stomach.

She was having dinner.

With her teacher.

Her very, very handsome teacher.

Mr. Firay saw her alarmed expression. "What?"

She stood up, shaking her head. "Mr. Firay, you're my teacher."

"That's obvious," he chuckled.

"We can't have dinner together. That's kind of weird."

"It's not like we're doing anything," he said, taking a bite of the meatball. "It's not a romantic meal…unless you want it to-"

"No!" she said, her cheeks turning red.

He faked hurt. "Am I ugly?"

She shook her head. "Not at all-" As soon as the words passed her lips, she pressed them together tightly.

Mr. Firay's eyes widened for a millisecond, then he grinned at her. "Haha. You're so cute. C'mon. Eat. You need to sleep on a full stomach." His persuasion and suave voice was getting to her.

Reluctantly, Daphne sat and started eating her food again. There were small conversations here and there, but that was all. Soon, Mr. Firay glanced at the clock and stood up. "I should go now."

Daphne slurped a noodle, and then looked at him. "What? Not bothering to help me clean up." Mr. Firay was really ungentlemanly.

He winked at her. "You're a big girl. You can do it."

"B-but..." she faltered. "What about the gas?"

"I can find it," he told her. "Just tell me where it is. I wouldn't want one of my students to get sick in the weather."

Daphne glared at him, then sighed. She ran a hand through her hair and said, "It's in the garage; top shelf to the right."

He ruffled her hair. "Thanks. Goodnight, Ms. Grimm."

"'Night, Mr. Firay. See you tomorrow." Daphne sighed, and started cleaning up the dishes. She was so torn right now. Her teacher had been involved with a gang and had a split personality! Talk about an interesting guy.

But even though he had given her a hard time, she still wanted to figure him out.

**A/N.**SO! That's the end of chapter 3. I hope you guys enjoyed. ^^ Again-if you had given me a suggestion for Science Fair Titles, give me your specific wants in your one-shot. ^^

Bye guys! See you...Oct. 8 or 9! ^^ Whoa, this is my last September update...  
><strong><br>Oh, dudes! Today's my two year anniversary on FanFiction! Holy cow! :O Two years with amazing friends, writers, and stories. I can't believe it. Just whoa! ^^ *celebration* Dudes, I'm so happy to have been with FF for that long. ^^ Thanks for encouraging me to write for you all.**

Bye again!**  
><strong>  
>~Lara<p>

Finished: 9/25/11

Posted: 9/28/11


	4. Chapter o4:

**A/N.**Hello, my faithful reviewers! Glad to have all of you here this fine Columbus day. ^^ Sorry I didn't update Friday or Saturday, or Sunday, I suppose counts too. I have a bunch of good reasons/excuses:

•Science Fair (but is going along very nicely!)  
>•Came back from Sea Camp (still unpacking...)<br>•Project of Puck (will clarify that later)  
>•School (the most used excuse)<p>

•This weekend was my four day weekend!

So yeah! ^^ Now, Project of Puck. In music class, our new teacher told us that we would have to pick a play, write a summary, write three fun/trivia facts, and perform the play. Not the whole thing; I meant a scene, monologue, or song. Naturally, I picked a Midsummer Night's Dream. And who am I playing? Yes, the amazing Puck.  
>Which is weird. Because I'm a girl. O.o<p>

But you know, I've always wanted to know what it's like inside a guy's brain. ^^

Hey, I have a question: Is there a difference between 'wearily' and 'warily'? Or is one just a misspelling?

Also, this may be a tad boring. But the action will build up probably next chapter. ^^ Promise...

About next chapter: I have no idea when I'll be able to update. I'm starting my ACTUAL Science Fair this week, and that means the weekend will be filled with making graphs, data tables, etc. So, next update might even be next month. I'm sorry. I will really try. I'll write a little bit every day, but don't expect an update for the next few weeks...

'Nuff of my rambling. Read on! *pumps fists in the air* I tried to make this very long, so it would last you enough days...

**Chapter 4: A Definite Split Personality **

Ariana looked at Daphne with a mysterious smirk on her face.

"What?"

"Say it."

The Grimm girl cocked her head to the side. "Say what?"

"Say that I, Ariana Henderson, was right."

"About...?"

"Just say it, _por favor_!" she whined.

"Okay then. You were right?"

She pumped her fist in the air. "Aha! I told you so!"

Daphne said wearily, "What did you tell me?"

"I told you Mr. Firay was _muy caliente_."

She snorted. "No you didn't and no, he's not."

"Did you suddenly forget what _muy caliente_ means? It's very sexy!"

"Which he is not."

Ariana pursed her lips at her. "You sure you're human, D? I mean, he's really, _muy_ good looking. _Guapo. Suave._ C'mon!"

Daphne relented, and let a smile esacpe her lips. "Okay-he's handsome."

Ariana grinned triumphantly and sighed dreamily.

Daphne comtemplated on whether she should tell her friend the truth. "And guess what?"

"What?"

"He's my mystery man."

Her eyes shot open. "No way!"

Daphne nodded.

"So I'm understanding that the transfer student's the new teacher?"

"Correctamundo."

Ariana sighed. "Well that's an unfortunate turn of events."

"That it is."

"But at least I was right!" she grinned proudly. Then she started to ramble. "I would probably die of a heart attack if he -oh, I don't know- came over to my house or something..." That comment made Daphne squirm in her seat.

"Well, you only like him for his looks. His personality is demonic, A. Well, his fake one isn't," she muttered, remembering the other night suddenly.

The latina peered at Daphne curiously. "What are you talking about, D? He has some kind of split personality?"

Daphne looked around, making sure Mr. Firay was nowhere in sight, then leaned close to Ariana. "He has a split personality. During school he's a suave, nice teacher. But outside, he's a devil of a teacher."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "How do you know? I don't believe you, D."

"He came over to my house for dinner once," Daphne snapped, a bit angry that her best friend would accuse her of lying. But as soon as her words registered in her mind, she gasped. "Shoot! I didn't mean to say that!" She looked at Ariana to see her reaction.

It was a series of short faces. First she blinked in confusion, then she pointed at Daphne trying to understand her words, and lastly, to show her excitement and shock, Ariana's mouth opened and closed like a fish. "You...teacher...dinner..."

Daphne looked at her wearily.

Ariana gasped. "You had_ la cena_ with Mr. Firay?"

She cupped a hand over the latina's mouth. "Shhh! People might hear you!"

"Girl, we're talking behind a dumpster. _Nadie nos va a escuchar_; no one's gonna hear." Daphne and Ariana were conversing next to the entrance to the cafeteria, where everyone knew that was their place for private conversations.

Daphne kicked a dumpster. "I'm just being cautious...you can't tell anyone, A."

Ariana nodded vigourously. "I promise! Cross my heart, hope to die!" She made an X over her heart to emphasize.

Daphne smiled, relieved. Then she froze as Mr. Firay walked into the cafeteria. He didn't seem to notice them at all, and looked deep in thought.

Ariana whispered to her, "There's your dinner guest. Go talk to him!"

"And be mauled? I don't think so. He's got a split personality for God's sake."

"_Amiga_, live a little!" she laughed. Ariana then wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "_Vamos_, D! Our fellow_ amigos_ may be waiting at the table. We can talk about your _vida romántica_ later."

The Grimm girl rolled her eyes. "Mr. Firay and I are not romantically invovled."

"Yet." Ariana wiggled her eyebrows.

Sometimes, Daphne wanted to punch her. "Let's go, A."

Ariana giggled childishly as her friend dragged her into the cafeteria. Josh patted the seat next to him as they entered, and Ariana sat there, smiling at him. Tina, Colin, Tom, and Willow let out a chorus of 'Hello's' and 'Hi's'.

"So," Willow planted her arms on the table, and grinned at Daphne. "Are you going to the fair, Friday?"

"There's a fair?" she asked, "I didn't know about it."

Willow nodded. "Yup. So far, we're all going except you. So you in?"

Daphne mentally looked at her schedule. "Yeah, I think I can go. My essay for Ms. Dayscall isn't due until Tuesday."

Ariana let out a small groan. "_Ay caramba_! I haven't even started on that. And my brain is blank." She grumbled, "_No me gusta la ciencia_."

Tina smiled. "I love science! Ms. Dayscall bribes us to do homework with candy!"

Daphne decided she was now bored with their discussion. "I'm going to go get some lunch." Daphne made sure she wouldn't bump into Mr. Firay in line, and was glad to see no sign of him. She got in line and took her wallet out. Daphne found a five dollar bill and shoved the wallet back into her pocket, letting out a sigh.

"Why the sigh?"

Daphne spun around to see Mr. Firay. He smiled pleasantly at her, looking innocent. She eyed him suspiciously.

"Well?"

"Just thinking," Daphne slowly said, "about you."

He grinned, his white teeth flashing. "Falling for my good looks already? I thought you were different from the other students..."

"No," she snapped, "I meant about your split personality."

"Shh!" his eyes widened in alarm.

"Why?"

Mr. Firay lowered his voice, and gave Daphne an urgent look. "Look, kid. If anyone finds out how I used to be, I'll get fired. And I really need the money right now, so shut up. Please," he added, trying to cover his impoliteness.

Daphne blinked at her teacher. He said please? Maybe he wasn't as bad as Daphne was led to believe. Well, as long as she ignored the 'shut up' in his sentence.

When she began to come closer to the front of the line, Daphne noticed there was chicken soup. Her favorite normal food. When 12-year-old Daphne was sick, Granny Relda offered to make Daphne some spicy camel hump soup, but Sabrina decided to make good ol' fashioned _normal _chicken noodle soup. Since then, Daphne's loved chicken soup.

Daphne frowned as Mr. Firay cut in front of her. Of course, she couldn't say anything-it was a teacher's privilege. He ordered the noodle soup, just like Daphne was about to.

The cafeteria lady smiled at her. "What would you like, sweetheart?" For a second, she sounded just like Granny Relda, Daphne thought.

"I'll have chicken soup," she replied.

"Sorry, deary. The teacher just took the last one."

Said teacher snickered. Daphne stared at the lady in disbelief. It was just her luck, wasn't it? "Well, I guess I'll have a hamburger."

She placed what Daphne had asked for on her tray. Daphne went to pay at the cash register opposite of Mr. Firay's, then went back to her table. Well, tried.

Mr. Firay stopped her.

"What?" Daphne asked, slightly annoyed.

He placed the chicken soup on her tray. "Here, you can have it."

She blinked. "Um, thanks. Why?"

The handsome teacher's eyes twinkled. "A thank you for yesterday." He waved as he left. Daphne looked at him curiously. She couldn't determine if he was nice or not. He seemed nice, but very pushy. Was he faking? Daphne pursed her lips. He was really confusing.

When she came back to her table, everyone was still talking about the upcoming fair. "So, about the fair..." she started.

Ariana seemed to know what she was about to ask and said, "It'll be at the fair grounds, obviously. It's one of those traveling ones."

"I bet this will be the only time it's going there," Tom piped up.

"Hmm," Daphne said. "Well, where are we going to meet up? What time?"

Ariana said, "_Siete. Las siete en punto_."

"Seven," Willow said, seeing Colin's confused face.

He shook his head. "I don't know how you can understand that mumbo jumbo!"

"We pay attention in class," the friends chorused. Tom laughed, and gave Colin a small shove.

"And I have hispanic blood," Ariana added, smirking. "_Soy una chica impresionante, sexy que puede hablar un idioma diferente. Haha. Toma eso, mi amigo_."

"Show off," Colin muttered. Ariana's smirk grew wider.

"Nah, I'm just proud."

Daphne smiled. When she didn't feel like talking, her friends were always there to entertain her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Colin nudge Tom suddenly.

"What?" he asked.

Colin pointed to a girl coming into the cafeteria. "Look at her. She looks scared." Everyone turned to see a girl, looking around the room shyly. Her face looked as if she was scared out of her wits.

"_Ella es muy bonita_," Ariana put in. "She looks sweet, too. Maybe we should befriend her."

Daphne's eyes were as wide as saucers.

She suddenly bit her palm.

Tina and Willow saw her action. "What's wrong, Daphne?"

"Red!" she cried, jumping from her seat to her old friend. "Red!"

Said girl turned in the direction of the voice, and a happy smile spread across her face. "Daphne."

The two girls hugged, and giggled. "I haven't seen you in years! How was Mom and Basil's visit?"

Red smiled. "Great. It was nice to see Basil again. He's so cute."

"What are you doing here?" Daphne asked excitedly, steering Red towards the table.

She answered shyly. "Well, your mom offered to bring me here for a few weeks, then I could go back to Ferryport."

"Why don't you stay here permanently?"

Red smiled. "Papa..."

"Oh, yeah. Mr. Canis," Daphne giggled. "I think it's cute you call him Papa still." Everyone at the table said hi to Red, and she answered back in a quiet voice.

"Guys, this is my friend from Ferryport, Red. And Red, that's Josh, Colin, Tom, Tina, Willow, and Ariana." Red took a seat next to Daphne. She smiled inwardly as she saw Tom looking at Red in awe. Daphne could't blame him; Red had changed in her appearance to be a 16 or 17 year old, and she was very pretty. Her face was in the shape of a heart, and her wild red curls bounced and shined whenever the sun hit it. Her eyes that had used to be a sullen blue were now a bright, and happy shade that closely resembled the sky. Her medium sized lips were also lightly pink, and looked very soft.

"Hey!" Daphne said as Ariana took her milk. I wasn't finished with that!"

She smirked. "Too bad._ El almuerzo es_ over."

Daphne groaned, then turned to Red. "How are you going to get home?"

Red showed her the hallway pass the secretary had given her. "I get to roam around the school. But I think I'll just go to all your classes with you. What do you have next?"

"Home Economics," Tom said for her, as Daphne struggled to finish all her food quickly. He fumbled with his fingers and said, "I have it next too. Do you want to walk with me then meet up with Daphne later?"

Red, oblivious to his nervousness smiled and said, "That'd be great!" She said goodbye to everyone while following Tom out of the cafeteria.

Daphne grumbled as she did the same with Tina, Ariana, Willow, Colin, and Josh. "Bye you guys."

Now that she knew Mr. Firay's other side, what would he do? She started to panic, but then eased herself. There was no way she would be late today. She would just skip going to her locker. They probably wouldn't need anything today.

To be safe, she walked slowly to her classroom. The crowds were dispersing slowly. She turned into the next hallway and almost ran into a bunch of teachers. They were walking agonizingly slowly. If they didn't pick up their pace, she was going to have to run through them. To her annoyance, they ignored Daphne's 'excuse me's' and 'move's'. Daphne grit her teeth; she was going to be late for sure. Finally, by luck, they walked into a classroom, and she sprinted towards Mr. Firay's room. She could make it!

But then, as she turned the corner, she slammed into something hard, and fell to the floor.

"I'm sorry!" the girl cried, picking up her stuff. With that, the bell rang. Daphne sighed. She was now officially late.

"No, it's okay. It's too late anyways."

The girl, Amelia, apologized again, and hurried off to her classroom.

Daphne sulked towards Mr. Firay's room and felt everyone's eyes on her. He smirked at for a split second, then rearranged it into a frown. "This is the second day you're late, Ms. Grimm."

"I know." As if it wasn't obvious. Her face heated up from all the attention. "Sorry."

"I excused you yesterday, but may I talk to you after school today?"

All the boys in the class went 'Ooooh'. Daphne mentally panicked. Her? And Mr. Firay? Alone? He might beat her up for being late! "Err..."

"Is there a problem?"

Her shoulders sagged. "No."

"Good, now take a seat," he gestured me to sit with his hand. "The lesson hasn't started, so you're okay."

Daphne slipped into her seat and sighed deeply. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Red giving her a 'Why-are-you-late' look. Daphne shook her head and mouthed she would explain later. So far, he had been pretty nice today, so maybe it was only a scolding? She hoped so.

Someone poked her shoulder and Daphne turned to see a girl named Maria smirking at her.

"You and him alone? You're pretty lucky. I might just start coming to class late just to stay after school with him."

Daphne snorted. "I wouldn't do that."

"Why?"

"This guy is-"

Daphne felt a hand on her shoulder, pressing very hard, and she shut her mouth. She looked up to see Mr. Firay smiling sweetly at her. Grr.

"Would you two please not talk during my lecture?"

Maria looked flustered. "Sorry, Mr. Firay."

"It's quite alright, Maria. Just keep it in while I'm talking," he said, smiling at her.

"Okay!"

Mr. Firay released Daphne's shoulder and she had the urge to rub it. He was most definitely evil. But he had given her the chicken noodle soup… His split personality messed everything up!

And Daphne Grimm had to stay after school with him.

**A/N. **Heehee. Mr. Firay's such a fun person to write. Anywayz...

RED'S BACK! Yes, I know. You love me! Haha, just kidding. I don't really know why I added her back in, but my brain was telling me, "Bring Red back or I'm gonna hurt someone!" Haa XD

Okay. Yeah. :3

Any questions, comments, jokes you'd like to share with me? Well, go ahead and review 'em! ^^

Again, sorry my updates are going out of wack again. They will start occuring normally after science fair, so sometime in November. PROOOMMIIIISSEEEE! Most likely after Thanksgiving. :3

TRANSLATON: _Soy una chica impresionante, sexy que puede hablar un idioma diferente. Haha. Toma eso, mi amigo_=I'm an awesome, sexy girl who can speak a different language. Haha. Take that, my friend.

Ta ta for now!  
>~Lara<p> 


	5. Chapter o5:

**A/N. **Okay, you guys know of how a faithful and nice person I am, right? Oh shoot, does that sound conceited, or is that me?

ANYWAYS...guess what?

**_I still have Science fair, but I couldn't stay away from the wonderful world of SISTERS GRIMM! ^^ _**

Actually, I finished my SF Paper, and my board is due Nov. 16, so I have some time to write. :D Umm, I feel like I have alot of news to spread, sooo:

~My Project of Puck WAS A SUCCESS! I had applause. *teary eyed* I hope I made Puck happy.

**~HAPPY HALLOWEEN! **Today's my grandma's birthday. Yesterday was my uncle. The 27th was my Aunt. The 15 was my aunt and mom's brother. And...I think that's it, haha. **What are/were you for Halloween? **You wanna know who I'm going as? **Peter Pan. **Puck is sure to be irritated with me now! ^^ Oh, by the way, for my Project of Puck, I wore the Peter Pan costume I'm wearing for Halloween. ^^ Yup, Puck's peeved.

~Thank you to those who explained 'wearily' and 'warily'. Maraming salamat!

~I have to advertise a story because I promised her I would. Does anyone remember me talking about a site called Wattpad? Well this girl "percyriptidejackson" posted a FanFiction called "The Long Lost Grimm Girl" and she needs some readers. If you have a Wattpad, Twitter, or Facebook, you'll be able to give 'Votes' and 'Comments' on it, and she would really appreciate it. The summary: _What if there was a third Grimm girl? What if she was separated from her sisters at birth? What if they didn't know about her until a year after the incident with Mirror was all cleared up? After the Scarlet Hand was stopped? This is her story. This is the story of Sabrina and Daphne's long lost sister, Scarlet Grimm, or as she was known, Scarlet Doubtfire._

So yes! Check it out please! Oh, and if you see the cover for her story, I drew that up on Paint. Awesome, right? I love the swirly-ness of it. :D The link: http: /www .wattpad. com/2135306 -the-long-lost- grimm-girl (Just take out the spaces)

~**DO NOT BE MISLEAD BY HOW MANY WORDS THE CHAPTER ALERT SAYS! This chapter is not over 5,000 words long. It's around 2,000. The other 3,000 words are for a special sneak peek that is talked about below.**

_~**AND FINALLY...**_I will be posting a new story for the PJO section. My first ever. Not only is it going to be a PJO story, it's going to crossover with SISTERS GRIMM! Yeah! And you know what else? **You get to read the first chapter. Right here. Right now...**

Actually, after the chapter. ^^ So here's your...CHAPTER 5!_**  
><strong>_

**Chapter 5: Black-Mailing Demons  
><strong>

"Good luck," Red said with a smile as she stood next to Daphne infront of the door.

"I'm so scared," she whispered.

Red rolled her eyes. "Mr. Firay didn't seem scary at all. And that's coming from me. I've lived in fear for over 100 years, so I'm an expert of scary. He's not scary."

"That because you haven't seen his other side!" Daphne whimpered. "What if he get's really angry? What if he hits me-"

"He can't hit you; it against your school's rules." Red looked at her watch. "Ah, it seems Tom might be waiting. I have to go, Daphne. I'll see you at the house." She patted Daphne's shoulder encouragingly, and left.

Daphne hesitated slightly before she knocked on Mr. Firay's door. Her heart felt like it was speeding the speed limit. She bit her lip nervously.

_What was going to happen? Was I going to be yelled at? Beaten up? Or maybe he would be nice and let me off the hook and just couldn't say no in class?_

She heard the click of a lock, and the door opened slightly. Mr. Firay's blonde head popped out and shook as he looked left and right quickly. Curiously, Daphne watched him until he suddenly opened the door wider, and grabbed her by the shirt into the room. He quickly shut the door after her and locked it.

"Why did you lock the door?" Daphne demanded. Though, she could tell herself that she sounded nervous. "Mr. Firay?"

"Shh!" he shushed, a finger hovering over his lips.

"Why?"

"_Shh!_"

"Tell me why and I will-"

And then Mr. Firay's hand was over her mouth. He pulled her away from the door and pushed her against the wall. His eyes never left the door. Daphne tried to pull his hand away from her mouth, but his force was too strong. Daphne could hear a few giggling voices outside the door. She continued to try and pull Mr. Firay's hand away from her mouth because it was blocking her nose and mouth.

Basically, Daphne Grimm couldn't breathe.

Mr. Firay glared at her, and Daphne went limp, trying to stay as still and silent as possible. She even held her breath, even though she couldn't breathe in the first place. There was a sudden knock at the door. Mr. Firay was now holding his breath as well. After a moment, a few more knocks were heard.

"Is he there?" A girl asked. "Try the door."

There was a jiggle of the door handle, then a more violent one.

"It's locked," another girl said solemnly. "Should we wait?"

"No, I've got to catch the bus," the other girl responded. "We can come back tomorrow."

"Okay,"

There were the sounds of footsteps, and after a minute, all was silent. Mr. Firay sighed, uncovering Daphne's mouth. She gasped in the air, trying to fill her lungs.

"Oh, sorry," Mr. Firay apologized nonchalantly.

"You don't sound sorry!" I returned, still trying to catch my breath. "What...what was that all about anyway?"

"They probably wanted to talk with me."

"Why didn't you let them in?"

"It's annoying," he responded with a shrug.

Daphne smiled in annoyance at him. She really couldn't figure this guy out. First he was nice, then he was a bastard, then he was nice again! Daphne sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"Come with me, Ms. Grimm," he said suddenly, beckoning her with his hand. "I have a job for you."

Daphne followed him curiously to the equipment room that was attached to the main room. She walked in to find a bunch of boxes piled high. She turned to Mr. Firay with a questioning look. "What am I supposed to do?"

"I want you to unpack all of those boxes and put the items you have unpacked in their right places," he explained, gesturing towards the pile of boxes. "Simple. right?"

Daphne gawked at him. "I can't do that!"

"Why not? You've been here longer than I have," he responded with a shrug. "I don't know where everything goes."

"But there's so much!"

"You were late to class."

"I'd rather have a detention," she told him.

"Okay, you have a detention with me today. This is what you'll be doing," Mr. Firay responded with a smirk.

"I refuse." _It wasn't like he had some blackmail over me._

"Oh? Okay, then I'll tell the principle that you had a romantic dinner with your teacher," he said, shrugging. _Here comes the blackmail._

"It wasn't romantic," Daphne stated, trying to hide her fear. "And you'd get in trouble, too!"

He smirked. "Yeah, but I'd take you down with me." Daphne could imagine Ariana making a comment at this point: _Ai, ai, ai! He said take you down with me! That screams sexy! Ai!_

The two had a scowling contest for a few minutes. Daphne sighed. _This was so unfair. Why did I have to do all this work, just because I was late? Had I done something wrong? What was this devil-of-a-teacher's problem_? She moved towards the first box and began trying to open it with her hands. She frowned when she couldn't manage.

"Here."

Daphne turned just in time to see Mr. Firay throw a knife at her. Her karate senses kicked in, and she jumped back, trying to get out of the way. Unfortunately, she tripped over a box, landing flat on her back. Mr. Firay chuckled and shook his head.

Daphne scowled profusely at him.

"Don't throw knives!"

"Pay more attention."

"You could've stabbed me!"

"But I didn't."

Daphne was getting tired of his calm expressions. She was about to retort, but she saved it. There was no way to win with him. Daphne pushed herself off the ground and grabbed the knife off the floor, and began cutting the duck tape with it. When it was open, she began taking the items out and putting them away in their correct places. Somehow, Daphne ended up telling Mr. Firay where everything went. The fourth box was full of test tubes.

"These go in the cabinets of the classroom because students use them," she told Mr. Firay, heading towards the door that led to the main classroom. Before she made it out the door, Mr. Firay seized her wrist, stopping Daphne. She nearly dropped the test tubes.

"What?"

"Don't go out there," he ordered, pushing her back towards the boxes. "Just set those test tubes on the counter. You can do the stuff in the classroom later."

"Why not now?"

"The girls here stick around for quite awhile."

"It's been an hour!" she stated, looking surprised. "There aren't any more students in school. Clubs haven't started."

"There are girls alright," he said with a solemn look.

"It's only your second day, how could you know that?"

"They were here until six yesterday," Mr. Firay told Daphne seriously. "They wouldn't stop talking and asking me personal questions. I swear, if I hear, 'Do you have a girlfriend?' one more time..."

"You don't have a girlfriend," Daphne confirmed, placing the test tubes on the counter, and going back to a new box.

"How do you know?"

"You said so in class yesterday," she responded, cutting the tape with the knife. "Someone asked you."

"Oh yeah," he responded, leaning against the counter, where he had been for the past hour, watching Daphne. "I thought you weren't listening."

She shrugged. "I listened."

Suddenly, a shrill ringing filled the room. Daphne's hand automatically went to her cell phone, but she was confused when it showed up as the regular screen. _Who's phone was it? _She turned to see Mr. Firay pulling out his phone. _Ah._

"What?" he asked in an irritated tone to whoever the caller was. "No. I don't care. I'm busy...No. Do it yourself. I told you no. You can't always count on me; I'm a teacher now. No! I'm hanging up, goodbye." He snapped his phone shut, and shoved it back into his pocket, an irritated expression on his face. He noticed Daphne staring at him and narrowed his eyes. "What? Get back to work."

"Y-yes, sir!" she responded quickly, turning around and sawing through the next box. In her rush, Daphne accidentally missed the tape, and ended up slicing herself. She hissed in pain and shook her hand.

"What?"

"Nothing," she responded, smiling at him, holding her hand behind her back. She started to saw the box open with one hand.

Mr. Firay returned to the magazine he was reading, and she continued with the box. With one hand, opening the box was difficult, but eventually, it opened. Daphne looked at her other hand for the first time after slicing it. Her jaw dropped and she slightly began to panic. _Would I need stiches? _The first thing she needed was a bandage or something to stop the bleeding, otherwise she would get blood everywhere.

Suddenly, a hand captured Daphne's wrist, and held it still. She looked up to see Mr. Heywood tearing off a piece of bandage with his teeth. Daphne stayed silent as he wrapped the bandage around her hand, sealing off the cut. He wrapped it with a medical tape and let go of her hand.

"Er, thanks," she said to him as he put the bandage back into what looked like a first-aid kit.

"Be more careful," he warned, stuffing the box back into a cabinet. "You can stop with the boxes for today. Show me where the stuff in the classroom goes."

She nodded, setting down the knife and grabbing some of the stuff that belonged in the classroom. Surprisingly, Mr. Firay grabbed the rest of the stuff for Daphne, and helped her carry it. She told him where everything was, and he actually helped her put it away. Daphne was slightly impressed. After all, he had been slacking for the first hour.

"Well, that's everything," Daphne said when she put the last beakers away. "Is that all?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "For now."

"What do you mean, for now?"

"I'm going to make you a deal," he started, smirking at her. "I'm going to let you keep your stuff in my room before you go to lunch. That way, you won't ever be late, but you have to help me after school when I need it."

"No way," Daphne responded without hesitation. _I could make it fine as long as I put my tray away in time._

He rose an eyebrow. "I should've rephrased that. It's not a deal. You have to do it. Otherwise..."

Daphne scowled at him. "I don't care if you tell the teachers I had you over to dinner. You practically forced me too! And I can just deny it."

"In that case..."

Mr. Firay pulled out his cell phone and came towards Daphne. She backed up until she was against the white board. He smirked and held up his cell phone.

"What's that for?" Daphne asked nervously, her heart going over the speed limit again.

"This."

Before Daphne realized what was happening, his face was only inches away from hers. She could feel his breath on her lips. She didn't have time to react before she felt his lips pressing gently against hers. She froze, staring in surprise at Mr. Firay, his icy blue eyes piercing her own. Instead of the teasing look in his eyes like Daphne had expected, there was a nostalgic one. Something that made her think this wasn't the first time they kissed, even though she _knew_ it was. Suddenly, she Daphne felt him nip at her lip. She shoved his shoulders, and he pulled away, snickering.

"W-what the heck?" she cried, covering her mouth with her hand. "P-pervert!"

Mr. Firay held up his phone. On the screen was a picture of him and Daphne kissing. She stared at it with her mouth open. _Holy lord..._

"Blackmail," Mr. Firay stated. "Now if you don't help me, I can spread this picture around."

This guy was really unbelievable. But Daphne couldn't let that photo get out! She knew he would get fired, and she in trouble. And earlier, he had a solemn expression when he had said he needed the money right now. Daphne cursed her personality. _Why had I been born so kind? Why couldn't I have used the fury I had on Mirror on this evil, blacking demon!_

"You can go home now," he said with a smirk still on his face. "I'll see you tomorrow, right?"

"Yes," Daphne responded through gritted teeth.

"You want a ride home?"

"No thank you."

Daphne grabbed her backpack and slung it over her shoulder, scurrying out of the room. Once she was out, she stopped in the hall, making sure no one was around before touching her lips again. Daphne's face began to heat up.

_That had just been my first kiss._

**A/N. **:O I absolutely love my ending to this chapter. It makes me so giddy! Ha ha ha! So, did I satisfy you? I'm in such a good mood, that I might actually update again today! That's going to be an accomplishment, considering I started writing _this _chapter today! Let's see if I can get two chapters today. If not, probably tomorrow, if I'm still really happy!

Thank you for your reviews! You always get me going! Special thanks to 'sophie' who gave me a lovely review, but in reality, all if them are lovely, even 'Jandra' (You gave me such a hard time reading your review, Alejandra -.-')!

Next chapter: THIS WEEK!

~Lara

* * *

><p>Okay, well none of you have to actually read this, but this is the first chapter of my PJOSG crossover. IBy the by, the prologue's the only thing that includes Daphne, Sabrina, and Veronica, and the rest is the PJO people. t's not edited, nor finished exactly, but I thought I should post because I was gone so long:

*Prologue.*

The three women ran faster. They could hear the screams and clashes of war behind them. The little girl was in tears. She had dealt with weird creatures before, but she was shaken up to this point.

Her sister tried to assure her. "It'll be okay. This is the last and final war. It'll be okay." The little girl just cried harder.

The mother of the two daughters looked as if she were about to break down also. She sighed in relief when she saw the Grand Central Station. There was a train open, and just about to leave. The mother waved her hands around and muttered a few incoherent words, and suddenly, they were invisible to the human eye.

"Two minutes to Poekeepsie!" the man shouted at no one in particular.

The girl's sister sobbed deeply. "Oh, so little time..."

The small girl looked at her family in panic. "Mom, are you sure this is the way to do it?"

The mother bowed her head. "I can't assure you that we'll win. Or that you'll see us again."

"We will, I will!" she cried out, tears falling on her cheeks.

Her sister shook her head. "You could see us, but not remember us."

"Why does my memory have to be taken away?" she whispered.

"It'll take away the pain, love. Would you rather suffer with all these grim memories," the mother let out a dry chuckle at her small pun."Or would you like to have a second chance at life. A better one with no pain. You may have no family, you may not remember us, but you will live much more happily." The two women waited for the verdict.

"If there's one thing I've learned from being in this family, it's that everyone deserves happiness." Her mother smiled with relief until the girl continued. "But even after all those bad things that have happened to us, those people who inflicted pain on us...for so many years...they deserve happiness." She stared at them straight in the eyes. "I'd rather have pain than lose my family, mom. I love you guys."

The three women hugged and cried, but the conductor of the train was all the way in the front, and the passengers were too so they couldn't be heard.

Her sister sniffled, and handed her a wooden stick. "Dad probably wouldn't let me ever give this to you, but I want you to keep this forever, even if you don't remember anything." The little girl gripped the wand tightly and nodded.

Her mother wiped her face with her sleeve, then took out a pink pouch. "I understand you'd rather have pain, love, but we have no choice. If all of our family dies out, the world will be gone. The Hand will take over and use us humans as slaves, but if there's still one of us alive, nothing can stop you. And it would be better for you not to remember; you wouldn't be in contact with any of people of your past, and that's much more safe."

She gave her daughter a last kiss on the cheek. The little girl's sister hugged her tightly. "This is what we do," she mumbled. "We save the world by sacrificing."

The mother put her hand inside the pouch, and came out with pink dust. Before she sprinkled it over her daughter, she said quietly. "We are fairy-tale detectives. This is what we do."

Her daughter closed her eyes, and her heart pumped in fear. She wanted to keep her memories. Wanted them forever. Even the bad ones. Every single happy, sad, heartbreaking, joyful, humorous, romantic, angsty, grim moment...

"Doors are closing, folks! Here we come, Poekeepsie!" the conductor bellowed.

...and all of the memories vanished. The girl looked at herself in confusion. She glanced up at the window of the train and saw a young blonde girl standing with her brunette mother. The little girl noticed she looked just like them...were they her family?

She pounded on the glass. "Hey! Who are you?" The figures just looked regretful. Just before the train pulled out of Grand Central Station, she saw the words the brunette mouthed.

You are Daphne.

The train then left. And that's when the army came. The two women could see the enemy. It was hard not to miss the bright sinister looking red handprints on their chests. The Master was sitting on a throne, in a body he absolutely detested. He saw the train leave and screamed in frustration. "You and your dreadful family!"

"You just missed it!" the blonde yelled, waving her fists. "You lose, traitor!"

The man glared at her. "We'll see." He pointed at the train. "Giants! Stop the moving train!"

These were small giants, and the only things they had were rocks. Fairly big rocks. One threw a distance and it hit the side of the last attached car. The blonde sister screamed. "DAPHNE!"

The Master let out a triumphant smile. "Now, for you two. I'm sorry it had to end this way, Starfish."

The girl glowered at the traitor. "Don't call me that!"

The giant hauled a big rock, and hurled it towards them. In a second, all that could be seen was dust flying everywhere. The Central Station caught on fire from its wiring, and it was chaos.

The Master smiled. "I win."

*End*

Chapter 1:

As the plank was lowered, all the Romans, and Percy looked in anticipation. Everyone had fallen quiet, even the pompous Octavian who everyone could tell was peeved that no one had listened to him at the senate conference.

A boy appeared from the ship, his blonde hair swaying in the cool breeze. The first person to step off the Argo II was Jason himself glancing at the camp in reminiscence. Reyna looked away. He had still looked the same, yet, he was different. Jason had the same spiky blonde hair, the scar on his lip, and his smile was even the same. But Reyna knew different. He looked much more carefree, and seemed softer. His eyes didn't have the same hard tone he used to have as a praetor. Jason was now a Roman-Greek. Or was it a Greek-Roman? Reyna bowed her head in silence. Oh gods, why did you have to have Jason disappear?

Following him was Piper and Leo. Hazel's breath hitched as she laid eyes on Leo. His curly hair waved around wildly in the wind. Leo's eyes sparkled with mischief and his grin told everyone that he was a jokester. His hands were fumbling with something, and were moving at an amazing speed. As soon as he finished building whatever he did, he took it apart and did it again. Hazel didn't remember that before. But Hazel bit her lip. 'They looked exactly the same...' She was afraid that he would suddenly recognize her and say, "Hey, Hazel! It's Sammy Valdez!"

Frank squeezed her hand encouragingly, but looked at Leo in nervousness. If Hazel had fallen for him before, it might happen again. He could only pray to the gods that that wouldn't happen. He had already lost his grandmother and his mother; he couldn't bare to lose Hazel.

And then, stepping down from the plank, was a curly, blonde haired Athena girl. Her eyes scanned the crowd until they laid on Percy. A great grin broke out on Percy's face, but no words were spoken. They both knew. Percy remembers Annabeth. She would've broken down right there out of relief, but Annabeth knew not to show weakness in public, especially in the presence of Romans. Jason's earlier words echoed in her mind. If you show fear or weakness, the Romans will kill you on the spot.

"Welcome, Greeks," Octavian said formally, struggling not to show malice. "It's a...pleasure to see you all."

Jason forced out a smile to him. "Nice to see you again too, Octavian."

Reyna stepped forward to greet Jason. "Praetor, we're glad you're back."

Jason grinned. "Enough formal talk, Reyna. We're all friends here." He embraced her in a friendly hug while Piper watched warily. She had a feeling Reyna was thinking of a different kind of hug...They finally pulled back after a few seconds, smiling.

Dakota blinked from the sidelines, as did the other Romans, besides Percy, Frank, and Hazel, of course. The Kool-Aid addict wiped his mouth in a fruitless attempt to cleanse his red lips. "Huh, you Greeks sure are affectionate."

Leo piped up. "You kidding me? We're all BFFs here!" He slung his arms around Piper and Jason, grinning at the Romans.

Reyna took a glance at Piper, then looked right at Leo. "Who are you?"

Leo struck a pose. "I am the awesomest-"

Annabeth interuppted. "Why don't we have introductions in your Senate House? I'm actually quite intruiged to see your architecture." Leo's shoulders sagged as Reyna agreed, and the two camps headed to the Senate House.

As they walked, Percy slyly moved towards the right, and suddenly found Annabeth and himself shoulder to shoulder. He wrapped an arm around her waist and smiled at her. "Do I know you?" he asked in a teasing voice.

Annabeth tapped a finger to her chin. "Hmm, I've never seen you before, but have you seen my boyfriend, Percy Jackson?"

Percy shook his head. "Nope. But is he the son of a Sea god?"

"Why yes. He also has a head full of seaweed. You look awfully like him."

Percy faked hurt. "That's so mean, Wise Girl. I expected a nice reunion with you wrapping your arms around me and sharing a kiss!"

The blonde laughed, and hugged Percy. "Have you been reading romance novels again? You're turning into a priss."

Percy made a face. "No! And I really hate the word 'Priss'. It reminds me of the time Clarisse used to call me 'Prissy'."

Annabeth chuckled. "Oh yeah. I think she still calls you that." Percy grumbled. She touched his cheek affectionally.

"I missed you," he said softly, grabbing her hand. Annabeth hugged his waist tightly.

"Would I be cruel if I said I didn't?"

"Yes," he said without hesitation. Annabeth laughed.

"Then, I missed you too, Seaweed Brain."

"That's what I like to hear, Wise Girl."

As they walked into the Senate House, Percy explained to the Greeks that they would have to leave their weapons outside because of Caesar's dea...

Little incident. Piper reluctantly put her dagger into the tray the little girl, Julia, was holding, and Leo tried to persuade the statue into letting him bring his tool belt into the House. Jason had no problem letting go of his golden coin, nor did Terminus. Annabeth didn't like the idea of parting with her Yankees cap and dagger, but did as the statue asked.

Everyone took a seat at the long, ovalish table with Jason and Reyna at the heads. The long returning Praetor glanced at everyone. "Now, to get to business. As you probably all know, Mother Earth is rising with her sons, the Giants. We came here because we had a feeling that Percy Jackson would be in Camp Jupiter."

"How would you know that?" Reyna asked in full-serious-mode.

"Because I was at the other camp," Jason replied. "Camp Half-Blood."

The Romans muttered amongst themselves. "So there was a Greek camp!"

"I wonder what they do there."

"Probably be lazy the whole day."

"Na, man! Remember Percy Jackson and the Fifth Cohorts? He led them to victory at Capture the Flag! Some skills he has!" Dakota butted in to their conversation, taking another swing of his Kool-Aid.

Piper blinked at him. Then she leaned close to Jason. "Is he allowed to drink wine?"

Jason looked to Dakota. "Oh, him? No, that's Kool-Aid."

"Oh."

Reyna called for attention. "Silence, everyone!" she then turned back to Jason. "Continue, Praetor."

He cleared his throat. "Her-Juno has told me that we are to sail to Greece for the final battle-"

"What?" Reyna said. "Juno told us that we are to sail to Rome!"

"We can go to both, can't we?" Leo butted in. "We can separate the Greeks and Romans. Romans go to Rome, Greeks go to Greece, right?"

"But the prophecy and Hera said that both Roman and Greek demigods, and gods would unite. We can't unite if we are in two different places," Hazel said. Frank nodded next to her.

"Somehow, we're going to have to go to both at the same time."

Annabeth shook her head. "Not possible. Only the gods are able to do that."

Percy leaned back in his seat and thought about it. "Well, Rome took over Greece, right? So maybe if we go to Greece, that's also going to be the place where Rome rose and fell?"

The people of the table rose their eyebrows at him. "Just thinking it up, you guys. I'm not actually saying that we're going to go," he added after he saw their expressions.

Reyna sighed. "It seems this meeting was a waste. We will finish this matter later today. I'm believing that you Greeks are tired from your long journey, so -Percy, lead them to their quarters- follow him to your rooms for a small nap, then we'll meet up here later on." With that, the meeting was over.


	6. Chapter o6:

**A/N. **Did I do it, or did I not? (Wow, that sounds misleading) I UPDATED AGAIN! *happy dance*

The result: A good ol' chapter and _cramped fingers!_

Enjoy!

**Chapter 6: Startling Revelations  
><strong>

"It's not that funny," Daphne growled, slamming a box down on the counter in the biology equipment room.

"You're a senior, but I took your first kiss?" Mr. Firay asked, laughing so hard he was out of breath. "You had your _first _kiss as a _senior_?"

She felt herself blushing and looked at the ground. "I mean, I've done quick pecks and stuff, just nothing like _that._"

Mr. Firay started snickering again. "How many boyfriends have you had?"

**"**Four," she responded, frowning deeper. Henry was not happy when all of those relationships ended with 'Let's stay friends!'.

"Only four?"

"What about it?" she demanded, glaring angrily at Mr. Firay. "I can't help if it guys don't like me!"

Mr. Firay looked surprised for a second, then he smirked. "You're mistaken. I think a lot of guys like you."

Daphne rose an eyebrow at him. "How would you know? This is only your fifth day here."

"When you're a young, handsome, kind teacher, people tell you stuff," Mr. Firay responded with a shrug. "For example, your friend Willow is going to be asked out today."

"What?" Daphne gasped. "By who?"

"Some kid named Colin?"

"I knew he liked her!" she responded, slamming her fist down into her hand. "It was only a matter of time..."

"First kiss as a senior," Mr. Firay snorted once more.

"Oh, will you drop it!" Daphne snapped, unpacking the box that she had jsut placed on the counter. "How'd you even find out about it anyway?"

"Your friend, Ariana." _That little traitor. _With unnecessary force, Daphne ripped the tape off the next box.

"I'm going to go get a drink, do you want something?" Mr. Firay asked, hopping down from the counter.

"I don't have any money," she told him.

He shrugged. "It's on me."

"Really?"

"Don't sound so shocked; you make me feel like a mean person," Mr. Firay responded with a sign.

"You are though," Daphne pointed out.

"I know."

"Bottle of water. Now go," she demanded, irritated again.

He left the room, and Daphne continued to unpack in silence. There were only a few more boxes left before they were all gone. _I'd probably finish today. If I finished, did that mean I was done helping him after school? _For some reason, that thought made Daphne's stomach turn a little. _Why was I sad about it? _

Daphne shook the thought away and continued unpacking. After her third box, she frowned. _How long did it take Mr. Firay to go get drinks? _Daphne started on the fourth box, and was halfway through when he walked in, carrying a coke and a bottle of water. He set them both down on the counter and ran a hand through his hair.

"Geez," he muttered, pushing himself back on the counter.

"What took you so long?"

"I ran into some girl's at the vending machine," he explained, taking his coke and opening it. "It took forever to get away from them."

"Why didn't you just say you didn't want to talk?"

Mr. Firay gave Daphne a flat look. She realized why he couldn't do that. He was the "nice, handsome, young, amazing" new teacher. He couldn't ruin his image. Daphne grumbled as she grabbed her water. _Why was it only me he was himself with? _

"Thanks, Mr. Firay," she said, as she opened it and took a long drink.

"Call me Matt outside of class," he ordered, setting down his coke. "It's weird being called Mr. Firay when school's over."

"Okay, Chris."

To Daphne's surprise, she blushed. It sounded a little intimate; calling a teacher by their real name, that is. She faced away from him to hide her blush and continued unpacking boxes. She actually felt a little lucky that she knew his real self. The girls that already, or probably would, have crushes on him wouldn't know a thing, unlike Daphne did. It was like a secret between them. Daphne smiled to herself, feeling slightly happier.

After half an hour, she finished the last box. Daphne frowned when she turned and realized there was no more. She turned to Mr. Firay. "-er, Chris?"

He looked at Daphne, opening his mouth to speak, but suddenly, his phone went off. He placed the magazine he was reading down and held up a finger to her. He pulled out his phone and looked at it. A scowl appeared on his face, and he flipped the phone open, putting it to his ear.

"What now?" he demanded into the receiver. "How many times do I have to tell you no? No! I said I don't care, and I really don't care. Yeah. Do what you want, but leave me out of it. Go ahead. Whatever. Bye." He snapped the phone shut and glowered at it for a moment before tossing it onto the counter.

"Was that the same person from a few days ago?" Daphne asked, her voice quieter than she expected.

"Yeah."

"Is everything okay?"

"Sure," Mr. Firay responded with a shrug. "Now, what did you want?"

Oh, um, all the boxes are unpacked and put away," she told him, gesturing to all the empty boxes behind her.

"Oh. Well I guess you can go home for today," Mr. Firay responded, looking slightly surprised, and a little disappointed. "That took less time than I expected."

Daphne waited for him to say more, but when he didn't, she frowned. _Was this really it? Was I of the hook now? Now more chores from him? _Daphne didn't know why, but not only did she feel sad, but she actually felt a little bit lonely. She hesitated by the counter, taking her time to finish her water so she didn't have to leave.

It was much more fun to be here than at her house, all by herself since her mother and father didn't come home until late due to work. Red had started to date Tom, so she went out a lot, and her sister and brother-in-law were living somewhere else in New York now. If Daphne was here doing the work for Mr. Firay, she actually had someone to talk to and interact work, even if it was just orders, and being made fun of for me.

When her water was gone, Daphne sighed and threw it into the recycling. She stooped down to pick up her school bag, lingering. She pretended to be interested in a poster on the wall. After a few minutes, she heard the jingle of car keys. She turned to see Mr. Firay holding them out to her.

"Want a ride home?"

Daphne smiled to herself. "Sure."

It was sort of awkward sitting in Mr. Firay's car. He had a pretty fancy BMW. It made Daphne wonder how he could afford it. She didn't say anything though, she knew better than that. Daphne sat in the passenger's seat with her hands in her lap, staring straight ahead.

"Do you mind if I stop for gas?" he asked, quickly glancing at Daphne.

"No," she responded quickly. Daphne cursed inwardly and bit her lip.

He looked at her suspiciously, and Daphne instantly regretted answering so quickly. He probably thought Daphne liked him or something now.

"I, er, don't really want to go home yet," Daphne said, fiddling with her fingers. "No one is ever home, so it's boring, you know?"

"I see," Mr. Firay responded, his eyes on the road again. "Where are your parents?"

"Both work really late. Actually, when I was 6, they disappeared. They were gone for two years, and I thought they were dead."

Daphne waited for Mr. Firay to say the cliched line, that everyone else had told her when she mentioned their disappearance. But to her surprise, he didn't even mention it. However his grip tightened on the steering wheel.

"So, they're both alive?"

"Yup, they are," Daphne told him. "And they work their butts off to support my brother and I. Even though they're back, they still have to try to pay off all the debts and taxes that they didn't when they disappeared. My mom has this crazy idea that we need to live in a big house and wear brand name clothing like all the kids at school. But I don't really like taking money from my mom, nor my dad. It feels weird."

"I know what you mean," Mr. Firay responded.

Daphne stared at him curiously. "You do?"

He nodded. "I never had a good relationship with my parents. It was always weird asking them for money. I felt like a moocher or something since I never really saw them. They were more of the business type of parents; the ones who thought money and power was more important."

She realized Mr. Firay was speaking in past tense. "They're dead?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "My father died a few years ago, and my mom was walking down the streets when a car hit her, about a year or two ago."

Daphne's mouth went dry. She remembered her mother telling her that some crazed driver. That Everafter happened to be Puck's mother, Titania. Did this mean what Daphne thought it meant? Was Mr. Firay...Puck's brother?

"I'm sorry," Daphne apologized aloud, putting her hands to her head. "I'm sorry, Mr. Firay...I think I just came to a realization."

"I said call me Matt, but that probably won't do now. I'm sure we're thinking the same thing."

"You...Mustardseed?" Daphne whispered. "Is it really you?"

"And is it really you, Daphne Grimm?" Mr. Firay responded, rolling his eyes. "I thought you would've understood by the third day of school. Those thoughts just popped into my head at this moment, you know. I didn't actually think that you were _the _Daphne Grimm I met years ago." Even though she found out his identity, Daphne stills thinks of him as Mr. Firay.

"Same with me!" she told him quickly. "I knew I had seen you somewhere before, when I saw you in the alley." Daphne then stared at the ground. "Your parents are really dead?"

"Yeah. I'm sure Puck knows by now, too."

"I'm sorry. I couldn't help confirming that."

"It's fine."

"It's weird though," Daphne said. "I met both of your parents, and really didn't think about them, until your dad died. I never really thought about Titania either. I just thought 'these two are the King and Queen of Faerie'. I didn't think that they would actually die, and not come back because they were immortal. I thought immortal people never died..."

"Well, they do. It just depends on how they get hurt that determines their fate. And that's normal to think," Mr. Firay responded. "I thought the same thing about humans. I never really thought about them dying because, well, they're really all over the Earth. If one dies, another is born. It's human nature to only think of people you're close to."

"I still feel guilty even though I had nothing to do with your mom's death..."

Mr. Firay rose an eyebrow at her. "You're an interesting person, you know?"

"Eh? Why do you think that?" Daphne responded, staring at him.

He chuckled. "No reason."

"Okay..."

"_It's a small world, no_?" he suddenly said, his lips witching. "I expected our next meeting to be in Ferryport..not us both suddenly finding ourselves teacher and student."

For some reason, his first statement sounded like he had a double meaning to his words. Some kind of inside joke only he knew. Daphne pushed the though aside and nodded in agreement, glad for the change of the subject. "Yeah."

Daphne stared at Mr. Firay thoughtfully. So he had gone through -almost- the same grievance as Daphne did at around the same time she did. Except while her parents had only disappeared, he had _lost _both of his. Daphne couldn't imagine what she had gone through being fatal. The thought of losing her mom was horrible! But losing both her parents at the same time? She couldn't even begin to imagine what Mr. Firay had been through. To her surprise, tears were starting to form in her eyes. Daphne tried to subtly wipe them away.

"What's wrong?" Mr. Firay asked, glancing over at her.

Daphne blushed; embarrassed that she had been caught. "Nothing. I was just thinking..."

Mr. Firay smiled gently at her. "It's all in the past now, so don't worry, okay?"

Daphne stared at him with her mouth open. _What was that smile? _She took a mental picture of it, because she doubted she would ever see it again. Mr. Firay noticed her gawking and smirked.

"I knew you would fall for my good looks."

"Who did?" she muttered, rolling her eyes.

He pulled into the gas station and pulled up next to a pump. Mr. Firay turned off the car and waited, staring at Daphne expectantly. She returned his gaze with a confused look.

"What?" she finally asked.

"Go pump my gas."

"What? No!"

A minute later, she was out of the car and pumping the gas while rubbing her arm, where a bruise was sure to appear later. That guy was abusive. But somehow, she was relieved that they had managed to stay away from the awkwardness of finding out how their parents and lives were connected (in a way). If it was anyone else, she was sure it would've been awkward. But Daphne was very glad it was Mustardseed.

When she finished pumping the gas, she got back into the car while Mr. Firay put his credit card into the machine and paid. They were silent on the way back, arguing slightly at a dumb comment every now and then. When they pulled up at Daphne's apartment, she got out of the car and leaned over before shutting the door.

"Well, it's been fun working for you after school," Daphne said, trying to sound sarcastic, even though it was the truth.

"What are you talking about?" Mr. Firay replied, leaning over the seat to look at her. "This is just the beginning."

With that, he shut the door and with a small wave, began driving away from Daphne. She waved after him for a moment, a smile slowly spreading onto her face. He was right. It was just the beginning.

**A/N. ***snickers* Daphne's first kiss. *snickers*So what'dya think? Most of you knew it was Mustardseed, didn't you? COMMENT SO I CAN HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS! ^^

In the past few hours, I see no one has reviewed. Hmm, I guess everyone doesn't know that I'm back yet...

Anyways, that's enough updates for those school week! Another is sure to come this Saturday or Sunday! ^^ HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

~Lara


	7. Chapter o7:

**A/N. **Heehee! I think I'm on review high! Thank you all very much for your reviews. *giggles* I was very happy with the feedback! A few replies...

To yellow.r0se (I think it was you…): You said I kept switching from Daphne's POV to No one's, right? When you meant switching, did you mean something like this:

"**I refuse." **_**It wasn't like he had some blackmail over me.**_

Or was it just a typo like, '**"You don't sound sorry!" I returned, still trying to catch my breath. **

The first choice is supposed to be that way because I didn't want to write a story that was in first POV. I put Daphne's thoughts in italics because I didn't want to write something like, 'It wasn't like he had some blackmail over the Grimm girl.' So I'm continuing to write that way, if you don't mind. :D

The second was just a typo. ^^

PS. Remember, anything said by Ariana, in italics, usually means she's talking in Spanish. :D

Umm…I think that's all the replies really needed! Sooo, read on! *pumps fist in the air*

**Chapter 7: Motherly Red**

"Wow, that's intense," Red said, sitting on Daphne's computer chair, tapping a pen against her shoe mindlessly. "So I was right in him being Mustardseed…"

Daphne stared at Red with her mouth agape. "You knew? How?"

Red shrugged, leaning on the chair. "Wasn't it obvious? I actually haven't seen him in over 100 years since we got off Wilhelm's boat, but I still recognized him."

"How could you? I mean, he must've appeared to look 10, right? How could you know it was him?"

Red counted on her fingers. "Well, his hair was the same shade, his eyes are still bright and blue, he still has that regal air around him, and his fake human name is _Mattheis Firay. _If you switch the words around in Firay, you get fairy-which is what he is. And Mattheis is close to Mustardseed, is it not?"

Daphne sighed. Sometimes, her friend was too wise. "I guess so." She looked at the clock. "Where is Ariana? We're leaving in almost an hour-"

"_Estuve aquí_, I was here the whole time," she said, coming from behind the door. Red and Daphne looked alarmed, but Ariana was as pale as a ghost. "Mr. Firay…is a _hada_?"

"Oh, Daphne, we sure have a lot of explaining to do," Red commented solemnly.

Daphne grinned sheepishly at her friend. "I'll give her the fast version. But Ariana, what did you hear?"

Ariana sat down on Daphne's bed and thought for a moment. "When Red said something about not seeing him in 100 _anos_, and everything after that."

She sighed. "Oh, good. That helps. Okay, so my family are descendants of the Brothers Grimm, the fairy-tale writers, and we found out that the stories they wrote are real about the characters and the fairytale people like to be called Everafters and my sister's husband, Puck, is a fairy from A Midsummer's Night's Dream, and Mr. Firay is his brother and I didn't know Mr. Firay was Mustardseed, Puck's brother, until he told me –well I figured it out- in his car yesterday, and…yeah." Daphne took in a deep breath, and smiled.

Red blinked. "Wow, you've gotten better at that tell-everything-in-one-breath thing." Daphne nodded her thank you.

Ariana nodded, somehow understanding every word. "Ah…that's cool."

It was Daphne's turn to blink. "That's it? No 'I don't believe you!' or anything?"

Ariana shook her head. "Nah, in these past few years I've known you, you've never lied, and even though this sounds wacky, it _must _be true since it's coming from my best _amigo_."

Daphne and Red embraced Ariana in a hug. "That's a relief. But no questions?"

Ariana raised her hand and smiled cheekily. "I have one! Oooh ooh! Pick me! _Me chercher_!"

Red laughed. "Yes, Ms. Henderson?"

"Why was Daphne in Mr. Firay's car? And what did they talk about?"

Daphne coughed, but gave her friend all the answers because she had no secrets to keep from her. She also explained how Mustardseed's parents had died.

"You and Mr. Firay meeting again is like, fate, _destino_, Daphne!" Ariana cried, staring at Daphne with wide eyes. "You, the girl who solved the case of how his dad was killed. It's like a romance! He'll feel like he has to take care of you because he's a man while you're but a young lady. A romance will bud!"

"You're thinking into this way too much, A," Daphne responded, grinning at her crazy idea. "But it is a coincidence that we met again."

"_Voy a decir_, I'll say," Ariana squealed, nearly shaking with excitement.

Red, who had gotten bored of the conversation earlier, and scrolled through Daphne's iPod, took off the earplugs she was wearing. "Why exactly were you alone in his car with him again?" Red asked, frowning at Daphne.

Daphne laughed. "It's not what you think, Red. He was just bringing me home because I helped him after school as my punishment for being late."

Red then looked a bit angry. "It was only the second day of school. Why should you be punished for being late. I remember saying goodbye to you before I left, but I thought Mustardseed was only going to give you more homework, not do labor…" The Grimm girl smiled as Red tried to defend Daphne. _She is such a good friend at times like these._

"Calm down, Red. _Calmarse_, Red," Ariana responded before I could thank her. "This is a good thing for D. He's an attractive, _suave, _experienced, young man, and she's a cute, young lady who is still a virgin. He could help her."

"A!" Daphne cried, her face growing red.

"Ariana," Red said in a warning tone, scowling.

Ariana laughed. "Chill guys, I was just joking." She patted Red's back. "Tsk, tsk, tsk, _mi amigo. _You should learn to not act so motherly! We can save that for when we're in our 30s or so."

"I'm over 200 years old."

"Oh yeah."

Daphne sighed, but couldn't help a smile from slipping onto her lips. She shook her hand and chuckled. Ariana grinned at her shamelessly.

"I still don't think it's fair that he's punishing you," Red stated stubbornly, crossing her arms.

The Grimm girl shrugged. It wasn't like she minded Mr. Firay after school at all. Honestly, Daphne really enjoyed it._ It was better than being alone at home and bored. Though, Mr. Firay had told me not to tell anyone I stayed after with him. _Daphne figured he didn't want the other girls getting in trouble so they could stay after with him. A wry smile made its way onto Daphne's face. _I couldn't blame him for not wanting that._

"I just don't like how you have to help Mustardseed every day after school," Red said motherly-like, still looking irritated. "He's using you, Daphne."

"Aw, is Red getting jealous?"

"Of Daphne? _No. _I don't like Mustardseed that way," Red said in an almost outraged voice. "But what if Daphne wants to hang out with friends?"

"I'm sure he'd let me hang out with friends," I assured Red. But in all honesty, Daphne wasn't sure. _That man was so confusing. One second he'd be nice, the next he'd be a bully._

"Still…"

"It doesn't matter, _no __importa_!" Ariana chirped, getting off Daphne's bed. "The fair is today, so let's look forward to that! And who knows, maybe Mr. Firay will be there, D."

Daphne rolled her eyes in a Sabrina fashion. "Why does that matter?"

"_Romance_," Ariana said with a French accent, which sounded hilarious mixed with her Spanish.

"Didn't we just go over this?" Red demanded, sounding exasperated.

"You never know," Ariana huffed. "Something might happen."

Daphne laughed. "A, he's a teacher. I'm a student. We may have somewhat of a past together, but that wouldn't work out. In fact, it's illegal. And kind of gross. He's like 4,000 years old –oh, now I understand why Sabrina didn't confess to Puck earlier; he was and is old- and I'm 17."

"It's only, what? A four-year _appearance _difference? My parents are ten years apart, mentally and physically," she responded defensively. "Age doesn't matter in love, _amor__, _D."

"Still, he's a teacher," Red interjected. "And she's a student. _And _I won't allow my best friend to go out with a teacher, nope!"

"That doesn't matter either."

Daphne sighed and flopped onto her back on the bed, hoping for the subject to drop. The fair started in only an hour. Daphne still had to get ready. Ariana spun around in Daphne's computer chair and logged into Facebook. Red started playing Angry Birds with the iPod, a game she recently got interested in. Daphne watched both girls with a bored expression. After about half an hour, she went to the kitchen to get a snack (which a full meal in Daphne's world) and came back later. She sat on her bed and stared at Red, who was now coloring one of Daphne's binders in pretty, vibrant colors.

"_Oh Dios mío! _" Ariana gasped suddenly.

"What?" Red and Daphne responded simultaneously.

"Willow's in a relationship with Colin!"

"No way!" Daphne cried, standing up and going over to the computer.

Sure enough, on Facebook, Willow's relationship status went from single to in a relationship with Colin. Daphne stared at the screen in shock. Mr. Firay was right!

"I thought she liked him," Red commented, coming over and taking a look also. "Kind of sudden though."

"Now I can go on double dates with her!" Ariana said, grinning. "You two really need to find someone to go out with."

"I don't like anyone," Daphne responded with a shrug. "And I wouldn't go out with someone I didn't like."

"What about you, Red?" Ariana asked, turning to her.

Red blushed immediately. Ariana and Daphne exchanged glances and smirked.

"Aw, Red's got a crush!" Daphne cooed, elbowing her. "Who is it, huh? Tom?"

Ariana gasped. "_Tom? _Ai, this season is full of _amor__. _"

"Why don't you ask him out?" Daphne suggested.

Red moved her hair in front of her face and looked down shyly. "He wouldn't go out with me."

"What are you talking about? All the boys at school want to go out with you!" Daphne responded and Ariana nodded in agreement.

"No."

"C'mon! Please! Do it for you!" Daphne begged, putting on her best puppy dog eye look.

Red shook her head and firmly said, "No. Now I'm leaving this room to go get ready for the fair. You should too, Ariana."

Ariana nodded, logging out of Facebook. "We probably should. I call Daphne's bathroom!"

Daphne frowned. Her puppy dog eyes are no use anymore. They did when she was smaller. She needed to work on it!

When Ariana and Red went to the other bathrooms to change, Daphne went to take a shower. When she was done, she blow dried her hair and went to her room to straighten it. She remembered how she used to wear her hair in braids, but she found that having her hair straightened was softer. The phone rang halfway through the process and Daphne set the straightener down for a second, walking over to the phone and picking it up. "Hello?"

"Hi honey, it's mom."

"Hi," Daphne said, continuing to straighten her hair.

"Work's going to go really late tonight. Dad's still at that business meeting in Trenton with Basil, too. I'm just going to stay at a friend's so I don't have to drive all the way back home," Veronica informed, then Daphne heard something fall in the background. "Shoot," she muttered. "Is that okay with you? What are your plans for tonight?"

"That's fine," Daphne responded, shutting off her straightener. "I'm going to the fair with Ariana and Red in a little bit."

"Why don't you invite Ariana to sleep over with you and Red then? I feel bad for leaving you two alone."

Daphne sighed. "Mom. I'm a senior. Pretty soon I'll be living by myself anyways."

"Not too soon," Veronica responded, sounding a little sad.

"Okay, let me rephrase that. In a little while, I could be living by myself, but probably won't be."

Veronica laughed. "Sounds better. My break's almost over though, so I have to go."

"Okay, mom. I love you."

"Love you too," she responded. "Bye."

"See ya!"

Daphne clicked the end button and set the phone down. She glanced at the clock which read 7 o' clock. That meant she'd have to leave in about five minutes to make it to the fair grounds for half past. She went to her closet, and threw on a pair of jeans, a black undershirt, and a purple and blue plaid shirt. After she grabbed everything she needed, she called for Red and Ariana to hurry up. The three went out the door, and Daphne locked it behind them.

She stuck her earplugs into her ears to block out Red and Ariana's boisterous voices, well, mostly Ariana. It was starting to get dark, which was the perfect time for going to a fair. The millions of lights that came off every ride was a stunning sight. As the trio grew closer, more people were walking on the sidewalks. They three maneuvered around an old couple that was walking slowly and finally made it to the gate where they would be meeting the others.

In a little while, Willow and Colin showed up together. Then the twins, Tom and Tina, finally came. Josh had said he would meet up with them later. They all bought their tickets an entered the area where the fair was. There were gaggles of people. Little kids were running around everywhere, teenagers walked around in groups, and couples were holding hands. Vendors called out to the little group as they walked by them, offering three darts for three dollars, and one dart for one.

"I'm hungry," Daphne complained, rubbing her stomach after they had walked a loop around the fair once to see what was there. "I'm going to eat."

Ariana tsked. "You're always so hungry!"

Red sighed, but smiled. "I'll come with you."

"Are you going to come as well, A?" Daphne asked, turning.

She shook her head. "I'm meeting up with Josh by the Ferris wheel, and we're going on with Willow and Colin. I think the _gemelos_, twins, are going to look for some games to play."

"A date on the Ferris wheel, huh?" Daphne commented, laughing. "Have fun!"

"I will!" Ariana responded with a wave. "See you guys later."

"Bye," Red responded, waving back.

Red and Daphne headed back towards the food stands, dodging around the throngs of people congesting the area. They passed a large line at the fried dough stand, and a considerably smaller one at fried Oreos.

"What are you going to go get?" Red asked as quiet as she could, avoiding two giggling girls.

"Baked potato," Daphne responded immediately. "They're basically the only reason I go to the fair."

Red laughed. "Okay, with everything on it?"

"Yeah," she said. "But I can buy my own."

"Don't worry about it, I got it," Red said, heading over to the vendor. "Think of it as an …'I've Missed You' meal. And besides, Tom is over there and…" She took a deep breath. "…yeah. So a potato with everything on it, coming right up for the Daphne-ish Majesty!"

"Well, you're going to have to buy Your Majesty like fifty potatoes if you want to give her 'a meal fit for a Queen'," Daphne responded with a laugh.

"Oh be quiet and go sit down," Red ordered, shaking her head and grinning.

Throwing another smile at Red, Daphne turned and followed his orders. A few minutes later, Red appeared and sat down across from her with two baked potatoes. She placed one in front of Daphne and gave her a fork.

"Thanks! This is mucho gravy!" Daphne stabbed her fork into it immediately and took a bite. She exhaled quickly, the potato burning her mouth. "Hot, hot, hot, hot!"

Red giggled. "A-durr."

Ignoring her, Daphne continued to eat, a little more cautious this time. She noticed Red looking behind her, and Daphne turned to see Tom with a girl. Daphne frowned slightly, then it hit her.

"Oh!"

Red blinked and shifted her gaze to Daphne. "What?"

"So what happened while you were in line at the potato stand?"

Red hid her face behind her curly hair. "I, umm…didn't do anything."

"_What?_" Daphne screeched. "Why not?"

She looked at the Grimm girl as if it was obvious. "That girl," she pointed, "They were talking and laughing, and his arm was around her shoulder. Doesn't that mean that they're dating?"

Daphne's face fell. "Oh. That's so totally olive."

Red cocked her head to the side. "Huh? Is olive a new word of yours?"

She blinked. "Oh yeah! It means _so _uncool. The opposite of Pucktastic and gravy."

Red giggled. "Ah, I'm guessing it's because of that sandwich memory?"

Daphne nodded solemnly. "Yep. When I opened my sandwich to inspect that they had put every single topping I wanted, I saw the olives. I thought they were mutated aunts cut up with their inside scooped up." She shuddered.

Red grinned, but Daphne sighed, slumping on the chair. "How could he not like you? You're cute, and pretty, and sweet, and just overall gravy!"

Shyly, Red twirled a strand of hair between her fingers. "I'm…I don't think I am."

"C'mon, have some self-confidence!" Daphne pushed.

She shook her head and stood up. "Topic closed. I'm going to go get a drink. Want anything?"

"Mountain Dew," Daphne responded, sighing. She put her elbows on the table and rested her head on her hand.

Red nodded and started walking back to the food area. Daphne watched her back until she disappeared from her vision, leaving Daphne to stare blankly at strangers as they walked by. There were a lot of couples out. One couple stopped right in front of Daphne and started to intensely make out. _That is so disgusting. _She looked away slightly disgusted and saw a familiar face.

Mr. Firay was walking with two suspicious looking men. One had short, curly brown hair and the other had a buzz cut head of blonde. All three didn't look happy. The two on either side of him seemed to be holding onto him grasping his arm tightly as to not let him escape. Daphne watched curiously and bit her lip. _What were they doing? Where were they going? _After a minute, Daphne stood up and decided to follow them. She looked around for Red, but couldn't find her. She was still getting the drinks. Mr. Firay was now beginning to leave her field of vision, so Daphne muttered an apology to Red, and hurried after the teacher. She dodged people filing around her until she was close enough to them so she could keep an eye on them, without being noticed. It seemed like they were heading towards the woods.

Daphne followed as they left the tangled madness of the crowded path that led to the rides. They slipped onto a vacant path, which lead to the back of the rides, and towards the forest. Now there were no people to hide behind, so she waited for a few moments before continuing to follow them. Daphne was, for some reason, getting a forbidden feeling, but she continued anyway.

After all, she was Daphne Grimm. And she was born to solve mysteries.

**A/N. **Have…to…post…before….sleep.

BE GRATEFUL AND REVIEW PLEASE BECAUSE IT'S PAST TIME FOR ME TO GO TO SLEEP!

Be ready…action _will _appear next chapter. ^^

~Lara


	8. Chapter o8:

**A/N. **...*smiles* You guys are so lucky. I've updated this past week four times, and my favorite authors don't update every single week or every other week!

I'm hoping to get at least two review for this (I'm not a review horder or whatever they're called; I'm just going to be REALLY HAPPY! ^^) because I should be using this time to edit my Science Fair and do my book report on 'Ruined'.

**BE GRATEFUL. **This chapter is more than** 5,000** words (ALMOST 6,000 HOLY CRACKERS!) this time (and no sneak peek chapter with this: This is _all_ FTFT!). Please thank me by reading this! And again; I'll love all reviews! Sad, happy, shocked, surprised, pissed off, squeal-y reviews. Flames are welcome too, but I don't understand why'd you give them out if you're not even giving tips on how to make a story better...

Warning: A bit of some cursing here and there in this chapter, but I assure you, it's not going to go crazy where every sentence has a curse word. ^^

**Chapter 8: Over the River and Through the Woods to Kick Some Butt We Go!  
><strong>

Daphne followed the three men for quite awhile as they marched behind all the attractions. It was hard to keep up at times because of the cords on the ground that were masked by darkness, causing her to stumble over them. When the three men in front of her stopped, Daphne stopped as well, hiding behind the edge of the Ferris wheel's support frame.

Voices were carried back to her and she held her breath tightly, trying to distinguish what they were saying. Daphne strained her ears, listening as hard as she could, but still couldn't make out a word. They started moving again, but this time into the woods.

For a second, Daphne debated on whether or not she should go after the, but she started to lose sight of them, she threw all caution to the wind and hurried to catch up to them. She matched her steps in time with theirs, so she could cover the sounds of crunching leaves she made with each footfall. There was a weird feeling in her stomach-just like the kind of nervous feeling she got before a terrifying ride.

Daphne and the men continued traversing through the forest for at least ten minutes. She began to grow uneasy and she kept looking all around herself nervously. _What if we ended up getting lost? _she thought. _Or if some animal came out of nowhere and attacked me? _She swallowed, wanting to close the distance between the trio and herself, but knowing she couldn't afford that. _If I was caught.._.she didn't want to think about what would happen. Daphne had no idea who these people were, besides Mr. Firay.

The man with the short, curly brown hair looked over his shoulder and Daphne froze, staring wide-eyed at him, holding her breath tightly. He made no sign of alarm, so Daphne figured he hadn't noticed her. He turned back to the front and shoved Mr. Firay in front of him roughly. Then the same man put his head near the buzz cut's head, and Daphne hazarded a guess he was saying something he didn't want Mr. Firay to hear.

The blonde, buzz cut nodded to the brunette and suddenly started going to the left, leaving Mr. Firay alone with the curly haired guy. The one leaving crashed through the forest, seemingly uncaring about the amount of noise he was making. Daphne's gaze stayed on him until he was out of sight. When he was, Daphne returned her attention back to Mr. Firay and the other guy, realizing they too were almost out of her field of vision. She hurried after them, going through the woods as fast as she could without tripping.

Mr. Firay and the other man entered a large clearing, and Daphne stopped at the edge of it, hiding behind a conveniently placed tree. Its' trunk was big enough to cover herself and it had Y-shaped branches, so if Daphne stood up on her tippy-toes, she could just barely see through the small hole it made. Her eyes widened when she realized there were now two other men in the clearing along with Mr. Firay an the first. The other two men stood in rigid positions, as if ready to attack. One was completely bald, and the other had fiery red hair. Daphne blinked as she noticed the red head looked to be around only 2 years younger or so than her. He looked even younger with the baby fat on his face.

The brunette one holding onto Mr. Firay led him over to the other two, both of which were shooting daggers at Mr. Firay. He stilled looked calm however, his shoulders relaxed, a bored expression on his face. An idea suddenly hit Daphne.

_"...those guys are just stupid. Want to be caught up with the police, again." _

_Daphne's eyes widened. "Again?" Her teacher was involved with..._gangsters_?_

Gangsters..._Were these guys his old gang members? _Daphne thought as she took in a sharp inhale of breath. _I thought he was joking when he said he was an ex-gangster! He had been telling the truth? He had seriously been in a gang?_

"You can't just leave like that!" the bald guy suddenly shouted, making Daphne jump in fright.

She held her breath and shut her eyes, straining to hear everything that they were saying. Mr. Firay's voice was a lot quieter and harder to make out. Whatever he was saying was incoherent to Daphne.

"The boss will be here soon, you really want to deal with him?" the red head demanded, sounding amused.

Daphne opened her eyes and stared in disbelief at him. _The boss? Did that mean the gang leader? Were they going to attack Mr. Firay in the woods? Is that why they brought him all the way out here?_

Mr. Firay chuckled. It was quiet, but bounced off and echoed around the trees. "He couldn't beat me up in his dreams."

Daphne's hands tightened on the tree bark._ What was Mr. Firay doing? Did he want to be killed? _She stared at the four men, unable to pull her gaze away. How could her teacher stay so calm when three other men were putting up such threatening fronts?

"I wouldn't be so cocky," the other gangster warned, cracking his knuckles threateningly. "We dragged you out here for a reason, you know."

Daphne shook her head. How could her teacher be so calm...? Then it hit her. He wasn't just her teacher, he was an _Everafter. _All of these guys are probably humans, and that's why he's so confident he can take them out! Daphne mentally sighed in relief.

"If it was to assault me, I know," Mr. Firay responded calmly. "That's why I came- because I was sure I could handle Twinkies like you."

Daphne snorted quietly. Had her teacher really used the word _t_winkies as an insult? The smile disappeared from her face when one of the gangsters swung towards Mr. Firay without warning. He took a step back, avoiding it with ease. A breath of relief left Daphne's lips.

The brunette scowled. "What did I say about being cocky?"

"I don't remember," Mr. Firay responded mockingly, a fake frown on his face. "I'm sorry."

Suddenly,Daphne felt a hand over her mouth. Her eyes almost bulged out of their sockets and she took a sharp inhale of breath through her nose, her heart rate increasing significantly. Daphne struggled in the grasp of whoever had her as an arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer to her captor. By the feeling of the chest pressed into her back, it was either a very flat chested and bulky female, or a male. Daphne struggled harder, terror filling her veins. She hadn't felt this scared since the Everafter War!

"What do we have here?" a harsh voice whispered in her ear. "A spectator?"

Daphne froze up, her breath shaky. _Was this one of the gangsters as well? _Daphne looked over her shoulder sightly, recognizing the blonde man from before-the one who had been with Mr. Heywood at first, then went off his way. Daphne figured the brunette had seen her, and had told his companion to follow her. She tried to say something, but his strong hand muffled Daphne's words. The man yanked her away from the tree. Her fingernails scraped against the bark, getting it stuck between the nail and skin as she tried to keep her grasp on the tree. Daphne winced in pain. _Ow ow ow ow ow-this is so not gravy-ow ow ow!_

"It would be really bad if I let you loose and you told someone about what was going on here," the thug commented, resting his chin on Daphne's shoulder. "We wouldn't want that."

Daphne tried to bit his hand, but only managed to lick it. She made a face as he chuckled. "How did you know I enjoyed that kind of thing?"

She almost gagged. His hands moved to her stomach and her muscles tightened as he rubbed it gently. "You have such a flat stomach. And you're pretty good looking too," the thug commented in a thoughtful voice. "I bet we could have some fun with you."

_No. Freakin'. Olive. Way. _That's when Daphne snapped. She brought her head back as hard as she could, smashing it into his. He groaned in pain, and Daphne quickly shoved her legs against the ground, throwing them both off balance. The thug toppled over backwards and Daphne fell with him. To save himself from hitting the ground full force, he let go of her, and she quickly rolled to the side and was on her feet in a matter of seconds. _Thank God for adrenaline, and thank Ms. White for Bad Apples!_

The thug flung out his arm, in aim for Daphne's feet, but she quickly dodged, stepping out from behind the tree. She made to run through the woods and back to the fair, but her eyes roamed to the clearing and gasped. The bald man was creeping up behind Mr. Firay, a bat raised high in his hand. The other two men, the brunette and the red head, were holding onto Mr. Firay's arms, keeping him faced away from the man with the baseball bat.

"Mr. Firay!" Daphne screamed, throwing all caution to the wind.

All four men in the clearing turned to her. Daphne's eyes met Mr. Firay's icy ones. He stared at her, half in horror and half in shock. The bald man moved in again.

"Behind y-_ah!_" Something hard slammed into Daphne's side, cutting her off, and knocking her to the ground. She fell hard, and her breath was knocked out of her. Daphne's head landed on its side, facing towards the clearing. She watched as Mr. Firay avoided the bat by an inch. She sighed in relief, but it turned into a grunt as she suddenly felt pressure on her head.

"Next time you try that, I'll break your neck," the blonde whispered, pressing Daphne's head into the ground.

Mr. Firay looked at Daphne for a split second, his face in a tight line. The thug with the bat raised it again while Mr. Firay was still focused on Daphne.

"Mr. Firay!" Daphne screamed again, half in a panic and half in annoyance of how he kept looking away from the enemy._ He couldn't be that stupid!_

A first collided with the side of Daphne's head, and a groan escaped her lips. Her vision went black for a moment, but before she could panic, it returned. Mr. Firay ripped his arm out of the two gangster's grasps, thrusting his elbow into the bald man's face. The thug dropped the bat he was holding and raised his hands to his face, swearing loudly. Mr. Firay turned and swung his fist at his head, striking him down.

Daphne's head throbbed as she watched Mr. Firay turn to the other two gangsters, who were in fighting stances. The red head yelled in a British accent. "You douche!"

Mr. Firay smirked, flattered. "Why thank you, Peter. I now understand why my brother hates you." Daphne gasped as the thought ran through her mind: _OH MY GOODNESS! It's PETER PAN! AHH! _She wanted badly to bite her palm, but her head still throbbed and she was unable to move.

Mr. Firay swung towards Peter Pan, who avoided it with a block and the brunette on the left swung at Mr. Firay. The fairy dodged, spinning, and sending his fist into Peter's face. The boy who never grew up was then unconscious on the floor. Daphne watched, slightly impressed, slightly awed, and slightly afraid as Mr. Firay proceeded to pummel the two gangsters.

The one pinning Daphne to the ground clicked his tongue and loosened his grasp on her, starting to push himself onto his feet. Daphne took the moment to her advantage. With her head still slightly spinning she rolled out from under him, and swung her leg out, hitting him in his crotch. He groaned, and fell back to the ground.

Only one gangster was still standing. The bald man, Peter Pan, and the blonde buzz cut were out. Left was the brunette. Daphne watched as the gangster picked up the bat the unconscious one had dropped. She stared incredulously. He was really going to bring a weapon into the fight again when Mr. Firay didn't have one?

"A bat won't help you," Mr. Firay stated, rolling his eyes. "Hell, even if you had a gun, it still wouldn't help you."

The gangster swung at Mr. Firay. Daphne winced as she heard the bat collide with her teacher's arm. When she opened her eyes, she expected to see her teacher holding his arm in pain, but to her surprise, he was smirking at the gangster.

"What did I tell you? Everafter, remember?"

Suddenly, the bat was yanked from the other gangster and before Daphne knew it, the thug was on the ground. Mr. Firay cracked his knuckles and brushed off his hands before stretching. He turned towards Daphne, and his smug face turned into shock.

Daphne looked at him curiously, wondering if he forgot she was there. He started sprinting towards her, his hands in fists again. Daphne stared blankly at him. _Why was he charging at me?_ He got closer and brought up his fist. She screamed, putting up her hands in defense.

To her surprise, his swinging fist missed. Or that's what Daphne thought at first. She heard it smashing against something, and she looked over her shoulder to see the blonde gangster she had kicked earlier falling to the ground behind her. She turned back to Mr. Firay, her face white. He glared at her, putting his hand down on her shoulder, and squeezing it painfully.

"Ow!" Daphne cried, pulling at him arm. "That hurts!"

"What are you doing here" he demanded, his voice seething with anger.

"I saw you with those two suspicious men, so I followed you!" she explained quickly, still pulling at his arm. "Mr. Firay, that really hurts! _Olives!_"

He let go of her shoulder, shaking his head in disbelief. "I can't believe you,"

"What did I do?" Daphne demanded angrily. "I'm a Grimm! I'm a curious person! If I wasn't here, you could've been killed!"

"I'm fine on my own!" he snapped. "But look at you." He raised a hand to her face and touched it gently.

Daphne gave him a confused look, and when he pulled his hand away, there was blood on it. Surprised, Daphne raised her own hand to her cheek, and sure enough, something warm and sticky was on it. Nausea washed over her, and she staggered forward, suddenly dizzy. Mr. Firay quickly steadied her, putting his hands on Daphne's shoulders again-this time more gently.

"Are you okay?" he asked in a worried voice. "Did that bastard do anything else to you?"

Daphne shook her head. "No, I'm just not good with blood." Ever since Uncle Jake had been shot with an arrow by Nottingham at the beginning of the war, and had had the arrow taken _out,_ she's been wary of blood ever since.

"Why did you follow us?" Mr. Firay asked, still supporting her. "Daphne, you don't follow quote, unquote, suspicious looking men."

"I thought something bad was going to happen to you," she responded in a small voice, dropping her gaze.

"That doesn't give you reason to follow three men into the woods! Who knows what would've happened if you hadn't came out from hiding when you did!"

"You would've been beaten by a baseball bat!"

"You could've been _kidnapped_!" he cried, irritation dripping in his tone. "And worse, if you understand what I mean."

Daphne knew what he meant immediately and she bit her lip. Yes, she knew it wasn't a smart idea, but she didn't want to let him just go alone. He could've been killed. "I didn't know you were serious about being an ex-gangster," she admitted, pushing Mr. Firay's arms off her. "I thought you were just joking, so I would've never guess something like this would happen."

"Something like this happens all the time, Daphne," he responded, shaking his head. "It's because I left so suddenly."

"Left?"

"The gang," he told Daphne.

She frowned slightly. "Why did you leave?"

"I'll explain it later," Mr. Firay responded, looking around warily. "First, let's get out of here before any of these guys wake up."

Daphne nodded in agreement, and Mr. Firay started leading her back to the woods. She stepped over the body of the gangster who was trying to sneak attack her, and made sure to tread on his face. She stepped on it a few more times for better measurement. Mr. Firay chuckled slightly.

"You're so immature."

She shrugged. "Your brother's rubbed off me over the past few years."

Mr. Firay winced. "Oh, I wonder what would happen if he and Sabrina were to have a baby-"

"Aww! That be so cute!" Daphne said just as Mr Firay said, "The world would end."

The two stared at each other and snickered. After that, Daphne looked behind them continuously, afraid someone would pop out. Mr. Firay noticed after a few minutes. "Don't worry," he stated, suddenly looking solemn. "If someone comes...I'll protect you." He turned back around, his back suddenly tensed.

Daphne stared after him curiously for a few minutes, frowning the tiniest bit. Her heart thudded in her chest-and it wasn't due to the lack of oxygen.

_Why did his words make my heart beat so fast?_

*•*•*

When Daphne finally saw the lights of the fair, she rose her eyebrows, slightly impressed. She wouldn't have ever been able to find her way out of the forest. Mr. Firay seemingly knew these woods like the palm of his hand. He even told her were there were dips in the ground so she wouldn't trip. While the lights distracted Daphne, her foot got tangled in a root, and she plummeted to the ground face first. Her already pounding head smashed against the hard ground, causing her vision to go black for a few seconds. Surprised, she tried blinking a few times, trying to regain her vision.

"Are you okay?" a slightly amused voice asked from above her.

"I can't see!" Daphne cried, scrambling to push herself to her feet.

A strong pair of hands suddenly wrapped around her waist, and she was pulled to her feet before she could, she reached out to find something to support her. One of the hands on her waist disappeared, and seconds later something warm enveloped her outstretched hand.

"Stand still," Mr. Firay ordered in a soothing voice. "Your vision will come back in a second."

Daphne did as he commanded, trying to slow her racing heartbeat. With her eyes shut, she concentrated on her breathing for a few moments, and when she opened her eyes, she could see. Dizziness swept over her, and she staggered a little. The hand on her waist quickly became an arm wrapped around it.

Daphne's cheeks blazed from the gesture. "Let me go," she said, trying to escape from his hold.

"No," Mr. Firay ordered. "You'll end up killing yourself."

"Let go!" she reiterated.

She was very aware of his arm wrapped around her waist, _too _aware. Her body was growing hotter by the second. She avoided looking at his face as she continued to struggle to break out of his grasp. _He's my _teacher. _I shouldn't be blushing because he had an arm wrapped around my waist._ Albeit, he was a young, and very handsome teacher, he was still a teacher. It was wrong. And yet, here his touch was embarrassing Daphne. She _liked _his touch.

"If you don't stop struggling, I'll have no choice but to carry you," he warned, holding onto me tighter.

Daphne ground her teeth together, and tried again to yank herself free once more. She couldn't flat out tell him what he was doing to her. That would be incredibly awkward and uncomfortable. But Daphne wasn't used to guys touching her, so maybe that was it. It wasn't just because Mr. Firay was the one with his arm wrapped around her. She tried once more to pull herself away, but only ended up tripping over her own feet.

Mr. Firay sighed and put his other hand on her waist again. "You asked for it." Suddenly, Daphne found herself hoisted up in the air and over his shoulder. She opened her mouth in shock but nothing came out. He adjusted her slightly, and placed a hand just above my bottom. Blood rushed to Daphne's face and she tried to get away again.

"Don't move or you'll fall, and I'm not sure how much more damage you can take to your head without dying."

Daphne stopped moving. She didn't really wanted to take that chance. Sometimes, she wished she was like Mr. Firay-not having to care about dying so soon. Mr. Firay started walking again, and she bounced with his each stride. He didn't even seem affected by taking on an extra hundred and ten pounds full of food.

"Aren't I heavy?" she asked in a quiet, embarrassed voice.

He snorted. "Yes, you are."

Daphne kicked her feet, hoping to land a strike on his face. He chuckled and readjusted Daphne on his shoulder. "I'm joking."

"It wasn't funny," she responded, bringing her hand down to slap him. Right before her hit landed, she stopped her hand, realizing she was about to smack his butt. A small breath of relief left her lips. _How awkward would that've been? _Stretching her arm lower, she began to pound her fist in the lowest part of his leg that she could reach. It didn't even affect him. He just chuckled again. Scowling, Daphne hit him harder and repeatedly, which only made him laugh more.

"Two can play at that," he let her know, amusement in his tone.

Daphne paused for a second, confused, until she felt a slap to her butt. For a second, she was shocked speechless, her face growing warm. She opened her mouth in outrage, but couldn't say anything coherent. "W-why did you smack my butt?" she finally demanded, still blushing furiously.

"Easiest place to reach."

She struggled against him now, trying her best to be let go. She didn't care if she fell on her face at the point, as long as she was away from this perverted fairy...teacher...whatever he was! He started chuckling again, and placed his free hand on Daphne's waist, hoisting her off his shoulder, and onto the ground. Daphne took a step away from him and glared at the man. "You didn't have to slap my butt!"

Mr. Heywood rolled his eyes. "What? Should I have waited and smacked your head?"

"No! You shouldn't have hit me!"

"You were hitting me," he responded in a mockingly whiny voice.

"But I didn't hit _your _butt!"

"You were thinking it."

Daphne's face grew hotter, if that was even possible. Mr. Firay smirked. Daphne shook her head vehemently at him. "I wasn't!"

He chuckled. "Yeah, okay. I can tell when you're lying. You're really bad at it."

Daphne scowled at him. How could he read her so easily? She stared at the ground in embarrassment. Her eyes were starting to burn and she blinked rapidly to stop her eyes from watering. _Why did he always embarrass me? It was seriously unfair and un-Pucktastic._

Mr. Firay sighed. "You really have zero experience with guys, huh?"

She glared at him. "So what? I'm sorry I can't help it if guys don't like me! I'm sorry I'm not used to guys touching me! I'm sorry I'm not popular and pretty, Mr. Firay! If you want to go talk to popular and pretty girls, actually let them into your classroom at school instead of hiding from them! I bet they would do all kinds of things with you!"

Mr. Firay looked at Daphne in surprise. She breathed heavily from her sudden outburst. When her anger died down, new-found embarrassment made her face burn once more. Mr. Firay just continued to stare at her, almost in awe. She looked away when she felt tears welling up again. _Sometimes I wished my tear-ducts weren't triggered by embarrassment and anger. _She tried to discreetly wipe away the few tears that were escaping. It didn't work.

_What was my problem. There was no reason for me to get all worked up. And I knew I had taken my outburst too far. I didn't know why I even mentioned crap about the girls at school. Mr. Firay probably thought I was immature now. _Daphne grit her teeth together in frustration. Maybe she was PMS-ing.

A gentle hand was at her cheek, and it turned her head to the left slightly. Mr. Firay used his other hand to wipe away a stray tear. Daphne attempted to look away, but he held her head fast.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, sounding very sincere.

Daphne's mind went blank for a second. _Mr Firay was apologizing to me? Shouldn't it be the other way around? I was the one who had blown up on him. _Daphne opened her mouth to say something but he shook his head,

"I'm not done," he told her, so she shut her mouth. "I really didn't mean anything offensive by what I said. I keep forgetting you're Daphne Grimm, my student, which is my fault. But I can't help to tease you when you have such cute reactions."

Daphne would've blushed if her face wasn't already as red as a tomato. _What did he mean by how be kept forgetting I was his student? Did that mean he...? _Daphne shook her head quickly. He definitely did not mean what Daphne was thinking. She was getting way to ahead of herself.

Mr. Firay let out a quiet chuckle, and she raised an eyebrow at him. "What?"

He shook his head, smirking. "Where in the world did you get the idea that I wanted to do 'all kinds of stuff' with pretty and popular girls?"

Daphne swallowed nervously and pursed her lips, her face still in Mr. Firay's firm grasp. "Well...I just figured since you're young and single you might, you know, want to have...some fun?"

Mr. Firay snorted and started laughing so hard he let go of Daphne's face and doubled over. She stood awkwardly, watching as he began to gasp for breath form laughing so hard. "You know that's illegal, right?" he asked when he was finally finished.

"Yeah," she responded. "But that hasn't stopped other people...and since you're a gangster and all, I thought it doesn't matter."

"Ex-gangster," he reminded her with a frown. "And I wouldn't have an affair with a student. I'm a teacher, Daphne. That would be extremely wrong and I would lose my job if I were ever caught. I might even-" He suddenly cut himself off, a surprised expression on his face. "I might even go to jail..."

For some reason, Daphne's chest ached. She shrugged it off though. It wasn't like she was planning to be in a relationship with this man. He was a perverted, spiteful, annoying teacher. Who happened to also be an ex-gangster. The consequences of a relationship like that were too severe too. It wasn't worth it.

"But I have to say," he mused, putting a smug smile once again. "I don't usually go for the pretty and popular girls."

"What kind of girls do you go for?" she blurted out without thinking. Immediately, she ducked her head, her cheeks flaming again.

Mr. Firay opened his mouth to respond, but shut it quickly. For a split-second, Daphne thought it was an expression of pain on his face, but before she could confirm it, it was gone. He glanced at Daphne and smirked. "Well, I go for the kind that don't have a lot of experience. They are the cutest, you know. Now shall we go?"

He walked by Daphne, his shoulder just barely brushing hers. She stared after him for a moment, his last words echoing in her mind. _What did he mean by that? Was he insinuating something? _Daphne shook her head violently. It meant nothing. He was just teasing her as per usual.

She hurried to catch up with him, her dizziness completely gone now. They were behind the rides now. Daphne made sure to step over all the cables, being extra cautious not to trip. When she caught up to him, he looked at her from the corner of his eyes, am amused smile playing on his lips. "You know you like hell, right?"

Daphne gave me a wry smile. "Thanks."

He chuckled. "Don't worry. I have a comb in my bag."

She rose her eyebrows slightly. Even _she _didn't carry around a comb. "You have a comb?"

"I need to look good in front of the ladies, right?"

She rolled her eyes and attempted to push past him but he stopped her, grabbing the back of her shirt. After releasing her, he dug into his messenger bag for a few seconds, and pulled out a comb. With a finger, he gestured Daphne to move closer to him. She did so, and held out her hand for the comb. He smirked, pulling the comb out of her reach. "I'm doing your hair for you."

"No you're not," Daphne responded quickly. "No way." She attempted to back away, but his hand shot out and grabbed her shoulder, pulling her closer again. She sighed. It wasn't even worth bothering to even try and escape his grasp.

"Keep your head still," he ordered.

"Yes sir."

His hand ran through Daphne's hair, getting out the largest tangles. She stood restlessly, letting him have his way. She had to admit, he could get out snarls without it hurting her in the slightest. He ran the comb through her hair now, getting out the rest of the snarls. When he was finished, Daphne ran a hand over her head. Not a single knot.

"You wouldn't have been able to get out the ones in the back of your hair if you did it," he told her, putting the comb away.

"That's true."

"Now, Mr. Firay said with a serious face. "Do you want me to drive you home now? I think you've had enough fun for a night."

Daphne faked a laugh. "Yeah, fun."

Mr. Firay grinned. "Well, at least I had fun. And I'm ready to go home too, so it's no trouble."

She frowned slightly. She did want to go home. But she really wanted to go on the Ferris wheel. She looked at Mr. Firay pleadingly.

"You want something?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I want to go on the Ferris wheel before we leave," she told him, adverting her gaze to the ground. "Do you...um, want to come with me?"

She didn't have to look up to know he was smirking.

"Of course. I can take the time on it to explain a few things to you as well, since you'll now be caught up in some of my problems."

Daphne looked up at him again, giving him a questioning look. _What problems did he have? _When he noticed Daphne's look, he gave a half shrug. "I said I'd explain it on the Ferris wheel."

She pursed her lips. "Okay."

**A/N. **I've been in a very festive mood (AHH! It's finally cold in Florida! WINTER!) so I'm probably going to add another chapter next week before Saturday. Gosh, my head hurts so much! This is actually supposed to be split into two chapters, but I loved this so much, so I added both together. So the result:

A very long chapter

Two cramps hands

And a throbbing head.

The last one is due to what happened yesterday in P.E. One of my classmates, Matthew hit me in the head with a dodgeball when playing Yellow River. Thank goodness it didn't touch my glasses or else I'd need a new pair. Gosh, guys throw WAY to hard. There were five (including me) injured girls yesterday and the cause was the boy's throws. Gosh, those idiots need to lower their strength!

Sooo...see ya!

~Lara


	9. Chapter o9:

**A/N.***inhales sharply* Guess. What.

I FINISHED MY SCIENCE FAIR! *Happy Dance* Now I can solely focus on writing until next year's SF. ^^

If anyone read and reviewed my MothxPuck oneshot...

OH MY GOSH, thank you! I didn't realize I would get so many reviews in three days! Yeah, I know 12 reviews sounds small, but I got 12 in THREE days...that's epic. Usually I get 5 each week. Thank you to everyone who liked 'In A Different Light'. Also, my one-shot winners for that...  
>Winner of Song (They found out what the song in the one-shot was): Adorakble Snowman aka Jay!<br>Winner of Maximum Ride Reference (They found out what the MRR was): Puckabrina-Percabeth-Fax10!

For those curious, the song was Someone Like You by Adele (a bit obvious because I put too many clues...). The MRR reference was the kids in the taxi. ^^

Replies, replies...  
>To Cheesy Dork: I checked it out, and Gakuen Alice (Alice Academy) doesn't have a studentteacher relationship. Um, she sleeps next to him because she's scared (she's like seven or so, right? I forgot the girl's name) or something, but they have no romantic relationship. I think she likes the boy,..oh, what's his name? Oh! Natsume! So...yeah. I haven't checked out the other anime (it's an anime, right?), but I'll look at it soon.

To Lara D aka Abigail taking over my account: Thanks for giving a nice review but GO ON YOUR OWN FF BECAUSE IT LOOKS LIKE I'M TALKING TO MYSELF!

Enjoy Ch...9!

**Chapter 9: Joining**

Daphne climbed into the slightly swaying compartment on the Ferris wheel carefully, holding tightly onto the railings. When her whole body was over the gap between the compartment and dock, she quickly sat down so she wouldn't fall. Mr. Firay followed, casually stepping in without a worry. He sat across from Daphne and the worker closed the gate, sending Daphne a knowing smirked. She blushed, looking away from him. Her gaze fell on the crowd waiting in line. "What happens if someone sees us?"

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Depending on who it is, either we'd have to think of a pretty convincing excuse as to why we are riding the Ferris wheel together, or it wouldn't matter. There's nothing wrong with a teacher and student going on a ride together, unless you think of it the wrong way."

Daphne pondered over this, then nodded, and the compartment suddenly lurched forward. They moved for about thirty seconds and it stopped again, to unload people and have people get on. Mr. Firay sighed and looked at all the people below us.

"Do you like Ferris wheels?" Daphne asked, frowning slightly. She hadn't even asked if he was fond of them or not. The fairy might have a fear of Ferris wheels for all Daphne knew.

Mr. Firay shrugged. "I don't hate them," he responded insouciantly.

"Oh."

The compartment began to move again, going higher into the air. Daphne licked her lips nervously. In her excitement to go on the Ferris wheel, she had forgotten that she was afraid of heights. How ironic was that? After she had fallen off the magic carpet one training day, she had sworn to never fly unless with Puck there to catch her. Daphne then glanced at her teacher. _Well, Mr. Firay _is _a fairy..._

Daphne didn't trust him fully though. She placed her hands securely on the seat, hoping the compartment would stop they were about halfway from the top, the Ferris wheel started moving full speed. Daphne stared wide-eyed at the ground below them. Since when did Ferris wheels go so fast? She reached out and gripped the pole in the middle.

"Are you scared?" Mr. Firay asked in a teasing voice.

"No," Daphne lied, swallowing hard as they continued higher.

"You won't mind if I rock the compartment then, would you?"

Before she could protest, Mr. Firay stood up and started shaking the compartment. Daphne wrapped her arms around the pole and geld on tightly as her teacher violently shook the only thing keep them from falling and dying. _I can't trust him at all! _Daphne's mind screamed at her.

"Scared now?" Mr. Firay asked.

"Stop!" Daphne cried, her heart racing. "Please, stop!"

Mr. Firay laughed. "Say you're scared."

She glared at him, and forced herself off the seat. Clinging onto the pole, she kicked him as hard as she could. He lost his balance and fell towards her. She shrieked as his weight pushing on her made it impossible to hold onto the pole and they both fell on Daphne's seat, making the compartment rock even more violently than it already was.

Daphne frantically grabbed onto Mr. Firay, wrapping her arms around him, and gripping onto the back of his jacket. Daphne's breath quickened, and she squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the rocking to stop. Mr. Firay sat up, dragging her with him. Although she was pissed at him, Daphne couldn't bring herself to let him go. Soon the compartment was only rocking a little, and she opened her eyes, her hands still shaking and attached to his jacket.

"You're a jerk," Daphne accused, her voice cracking.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, looking amused. "I didn't think I'd fall..."

"Why are you like this?" Daphne demanded, slowly making herself release him.

He straightened out his jacket, smoothing the wrinkles she had made. "Like what?"

"This! You always say something mean to me and then apologize, and think everything is okay!" Daphne cried, throwing up her arms. The compartment shook again, and she leaned forwards, grabbing onto Mr. Firay again. He put his hands on her shoulders after a moment, then Daphne let go of him.

"I'm sorry," he said frowning. "It's just my personality."

"Well it's not a good one!" Daphne told him.

"I know," he responded.

"Yeah-wait, what?" she said, staring at him.

"I know I have a horrible personality," he told Daphne, rolling his eyes. "I'm not blind."

Daphne felt the compartment stop and looked around her before she could stop herself. Dizziness swept over her when she realized they were stopped at the top. Usually she would be feeling excited, but after her near death experience, she was feeling sick. She pushed herself away from the side, but before she could sit back, Mr. Firay grabbed her and pulled Daphne towards him.

"Wait," she said, trying to pull away from him.

He held her tighter, and slid her down right next to him. "No. I know you're scared, so it's okay."

Daphne chewed her lip, but sighed. He was right; she was scared. And being closer to him made her more comfortable-not that she was going to let him know that. "Fine. But now you have to tell me why those men tried to assault you in the woods."

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Straight to the point, huh? Don't you want to know why I became a rebel?"

"You mean gangster?"

He gave her a look. "Do you want to know or not?"

Daphne looked up at him. If she said yes, would he tell her? Or would he be his usual self and say something along the lines of "like I would tell you"? After a moment of hesitation, she nodded. He was the one who offered.

He snorted. "Like I would tell you."

Daphne tried to move away from him. _I knew it! _He held her fast though, and laughed quietly. "Just kidding," he said, smirking. "I'm not exactly sure when I started. See, when my mom died, her will said to send me to regular school, and I could take the throne if I wanted. I didn't really, so my cousin, Peaseblossom, is currently the King of Fairy, and I was told to go to school. I started either in my freshman or sophomore year of high school. It just so happened the that school I went to had a bunch of members from the town's gang attending it too."

Daphne remembered the fiery red head. "Were all the gangsters Everafters? Like Peter Pan?"

Mr. Firay said, "Firstly, _rebels. _Secondly, not all. We still had to keep our identities a secret, so I went by Mattheis Firay, or Matt. And a reason I joined was because I wanted to irk my brother by teaming up with Peter." He smirked to himself.

"That doesn't mean you have to join them," Daphne pointed out.

Mr. Firay hesitated for a moment, looking uncomfortable. He let out a long sigh before continuing. "That's not it. I didn't join out of my free will right away. At first, I was just like every other normal student. I got good grades, played basketball on the school's team, and had friends. Mind you, they were mortals. But one of my good friends was a complete stereotypical nerd who was made fun of all the time."

Daphne stayed quiet, nodding her head when she felt the need to. Mr. Firay stretched, resting his arms on top of the seat. Daphne leaned forwards to make sure that she wouldn't accidentally lean back onto his arm. Sitting next to him like this made Daphne feel like they were a couple taking a ride on the Ferris wheel. Her face heated slightly at her thoughts. Luckily, Mr. Firay's voice interrupted them.

"I'm not sure about nowadays, but back when I went to school, we had the classic bullies who literally beat people up for lunch money and all that."

"Weren't you in high school like four years ago, Mr. Firay?" Daphne asked.

He rose an eyebrow, ignoring her question. "I told you to call me Matt out of class."

Daphne looked puzzled. "But you're name's Mustardseed-"

"Well, I'm telling you to call me Matt. It sounds like I fit in, so call me Matt," he ordered.

"Sorry, er, _Matt_," she responded, looking at her lap. "Please continue."

He chuckled. "Anyways, I bet you guessed it, but my friend was beaten up constantly. He never told me though. So one day after practice, I was walking out of the locker room and I ran into four guys beating him up. Without thinking, I dropped my equipment and attacked them."

"All four?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "It was easy. They were all down for the count in five minutes flat. It just so happened that the leader of the school's gang was watching and he wanted me to join them. Do you know what happens when you refuse to join a gang?"

Daphne shook her head. Mr. Firay suddenly started to take off his shirt. She grabbed it and pulled it back down, blushing madly. _Holy unicorns._

"What are you doing?" she demanded, avoiding eye contact.

"Relax," Mr. Firay responded with a snicker. "I'm just going to show you something."

Daphne frowned, and let go of his shirt. He pulled it up again, and showed her his back. Her breath caught in her throat when she saw a large, pale, scare across the top of it. Daphne slowly reached out and touched the smooth skin.

"What did they do?" Daphne whispered.

Mr. Firay let out a bark of laughter. "What do you think? They all got together and beat me up until I said I'd join."

Daphne looked lower on his back and saw another scar. She touched it and Mr. Firay arched his back slightly. "What's this scar from? And wait, aren't you kind of immortal? Shouldn't these heal?"

"From lighters," he responded. "And you're right, but Peter Pan had a dirty trick up his sleeve and rubbed some poison on it. It's not too fatal if you're a fairy, but it won't ever actually heal. Same for the other scar."

"Oh my God," Daphne said, pulling her hand away. "You didn't tell the police? I mean, you could've left out the poison part but..."

"And get myself killed?" Mr. Firay responded, pulling down his shirt again, and looking at Daphne with an eyebrow cocked. "I don't think so."

"But-"

"They knew I was stronger than the leader," Mr. Firay explained, ignoring her. "That's why they all got together to force me to join, If there had been only like, five or seven of them I could have taken them. Twenty, not so much. And some were Everafters-harder to fight. And since I did join, I was able to easily stop the bullying at the school. My friend was never harassed again."

"So why didn't you just join before they beat you up?" Daphne asked.

Mr. Firay shrugged. "I hadn't thought about being able to stop the bullies at school if I was in the gang, so that's why I refused at first."

"So you went through all that just for your friend?"

"Pretty much," he said with a shrug. "But it was also for everyone who was being bullied as well."

Daphne stared at Mr. Firay. _I had been wrong about him all along. He wasn't some jerk_ _who didn't care about anyone but himself. In fact, it was like he cared about everyone else more than himself_. He had gone through all that, plus having both his parents die? Guilt washed over Daphne. It felt like her heart had dropped into her gut. _I was the jerk here; not him. _Suddenly, her eyes felt wet, and she blinked furiously. Mr. Firay put a hand on her shoulder, and she looked up at him. He almost looked as guilt as she felt, which threw her off guard. What was he feeling guilty about?

"Are you okay?" he asked in concern. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry..."

_That's why he felt guilty. _Daphne shook her head quickly. "That's not it...it's just...I had pinned you as a self-centered jerk, but I didn't know you at all, so I was just assuming things and I feel really bad about it because you're actually a nice person who would do all that for your friends and yet the whole time I knew you..." Daphne stopped her rambling.

Mr. Firay's face was twisted into an expression she didn't recognize. "It's okay. Being a jerk is part of my personality as well. That just isn't my whole personality."

"I'm a jerk too," she pointed out.

"No you're not," Mr. Firay said with a sigh. "You're a Grimm; helpful and strong-willed. You're just an honest girl...who cries easily. And who is probably very gullible," he added as an afterthought.

"How'd you know?" Daphne asked.

Mr. Firay grinned. "I just get a feeling from you."

Daphne couldn't help but smile back at him. She was seeing him in a new light now. But seeing him in this new light made her heart beat increase, and her stomach churn. She couldn't pull her gaze away from his handsome face. Even though she hadn't had much to do with guys, she definitely recognized these feelings. And it wasn't a good sign.

**A/N.** *happy dance* Ah yes, a filler-ish chapter. I finished this early so be happy. I'm most likely going to update again tomorrow, so look out! And something I see...

Nine Chapters.  
>Sixty Reviews.<br>Over 100 visitors a Day.  
>300+ hits a Day.<p>

That's messed up. Where are my reviews? Your reviews will make my updates come faster (well, not really. I'm not a review hoarder, know that. I just love feedback! Makes me feel special! ^^)!

Anyways, I'M SO EXCITED FOR TOMORROW! MY AUNT'S FAMILY IS COMING TOMORROW FROM SAN FRANCISCO!

Okay, well. See you tomorrow!  
>~LαΓα<p> 


	10. Chapter 10:

**A/N. **Okay...WHY DO I FEEL LIKE NO ONE'S READING BESIDES RockstarGurl4444 and Doglover231? -.-' I miss my other friends too...

But I'm not here to mope, but to GIVE YOU A CHAPTER! I have ten chapters and 60+ reviews: not too shabby. Thanks you guys! ^^

Enjoy! (My cousins say hi! THEY ARE ADORABLE! Shall change my profile picture to them as soon as they get back from the airport!)

**Chapter 10: Daphne's Phone  
><strong>

The air had become considerably colder after two more go's around on the Ferris wheel. Now that Daphne had become used to the height the Ferris wheel went up to, she was enjoying the ride. Mr. Firay sat beside her, keeping silent after spilling part of his past. The ride suddenly came to a halt, stopping us at the very top. Daphne moved close to the side of the compartment so she could look down. Mr. Firay moved as well, shaking the compartment. A startled gasp escaped Daphne's lips and she jerked away from the edge, smashing her head against Mr. Firay's.

"Ow," she complained, bringing a hand to the back of her head.

Mr. Firay grinned at her. "You have a hard head."

"No, you do," she responded, frowning.

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes, nodding to the left. "Aren't those your friends?"

Following his finger, Daphne located a few familiar faces that sent a jolt of surprise through her. Red and Ariana were standing in line for the Ferris Wheel, along with Colin and Tina. Panic gripped Daphne, and she looked back at her teacher-who looked seemingly unconcerned.

"They are going to see us!" Daphne told Mr. Firay in a frantic whisper.

"Why does it matter?" he responded, vaguely amused.

"Because," Daphne started, ducking her head. "Ariana has it in her head that something might be going on with us, or will be, so if she sees us together she'll think she's right. And Red...ugh, I don't even want to think about what she'll do. I ditched her to follow you and didn't even leave her a note or anything so she probably hates me. Or she's going to scold me like a mother later."

Mr. Firay chuckled. "You seem to have dug yourself a pretty deep grave."

Daphne glared at him. "Thank you for your concern."

"Anytime," he responded with a wink.

Rolling her eyes, Daphne dropped her head into her hands, thinking hard. How would she be able to get them out of this situation? It was impossible. She quickly counted the groups of people in like, and then the number of compartments ahead of theirs. _Just our luck. They get to have our car. That meant they'd definitely see us._

"Put your head down," Mr. Firay ordered, motioning to his chest. "Face into my chest, and wrap your arms around my neck."

"What? Why?"

"Just do it," he commanded, taking the back of Daphne's head and forcing it into his chest.

A muffled cry escaped her lips, and she felt Mr. Firay's chest reverberate with quiet laughter. Mr. Firay then grabbed her arms and wrapped them around his neck. A few seconds later, she felt him pulling her hair over the bit of her face that was showing. Daphne kept her face pressed into his chest, sitting as still as possible.

"Can we go one more around?" Daphne heard Mr. Firay ask in a very persuasive voice.

"Sure," another voice, Daphne presumed the worker's, responded and the compartment kept moving.

"_Hola_, Mr. Firay!" Daphne heard Ariana cry and felt Mr. Firay nod in response.

Daphne bit her lip in anxiety, silently begging for Ariana not to notice her. After a minute, she felt Mr. Firay pulling away from her, and she quickly tightened her arms around his neck.

"Daphne," Mr. Firay started, prying her hands off him. "It's all clear. They got on a cart a few compartments below us."

Her face blazed and she quickly pushed herself away from him. "Um, thanks."

"Anytime," he responded with a grin.

When the Ferris wheel came back full circuit, the worker opened the compartment door to let them out. Daphne nearly jumped out, keeping her head down. Mr. Firay followed, also keeping his head down, and together they hurried fast as they could away from the attraction.

"Let's get you home," Mr. Firay said, pulling Daphne in the direction of the parking lot.

They made it to the parking lot without trouble. A chilly wind nipped at Daphne's exposed skin and she shivered, pulling her jacket tighter around her. Mr. Firay guided her through the dark, coming to a stop at his car. He fumbled with his keys for a second before opened in the passenger door for her.

Mr. Firay started the car and glanced at Daphne. "Do you have service on your cell phone?"

Daphne's eyes widened and she gasped, digging her hand into her pocket. _My cell phone! _She fumbled with the for a minute, realizing it was off. Scowling, she pressed the ON button. Her phone had a horrible habit of turning off randomly. When it loaded, text message after text message arrived. After fifteen text messages, her missed calls showed up. There were thirty of them. She checked those first. Fifteen from Red (such a doting mother!), ten from Ariana, three from Willow, and two from Colin. She didn't even bother to read the text messages. She flipped open her phone and held down the one button, speed-dialing Ariana.

"Daphne!" Ariana cried after the first ring.

"Hi."

"Where are you?" she demanded. "Do you know how long we've been looking for you? I though you got kidnapped! _Rojo_ said that were there one second and then you were gone! And Sam said he saw you going into the forest, _el bosque_!"

"Calm down," Daphne said, looking over at Mr, Firay, who was focusing on the heater, but she knew he was eavesdropping. "I'm okay, I just an into...an old friend."

Mr. Firay glanced at her, smirking. Blushing, Daphne turned away from him. She wasn't very good thinking on the spot.

"You could have at least called!" a new voice, a much more angrier and scolding-sounding voice, cried.

"_Rojo_!" Daphne heard Ariana shout. "Give that back!_ Dale que volver_!"

"In a minute," Red responded. "You could have at least called, Daphne Grimm!"

"Sorry," she said with a sigh. She had really hoped she didn't have to talk to Red. "I forgot I had my phone. It was off."

"You had me-us worried sick!"

"Sorry," Daphne apologized again. "Tell Ariana I said _lo siento._ It's just, I didn't want to let him out of my sight."

"Him?"

_Crap. _"Yeah, my friend."

"Where are you now?"

"On my way home."

Her phone beeped, and Daphne looked at it quickly. The low battery sign was flashing. Sighing, she placed the phone against her ear again. "Look," she started," I've go to go. My phone's dying."

"Are you with the guy now?"

"Yeah, he's bringing me home. Tell Tom or Ariana to drive you; I'll see you at home," Daphne responded quickly, her phone beeping again.

"Wait, Daphne!"

"Bye!"

Hitting the end button, she disconnected the call and shut off her cell phone. She put it back into her pocket, letting out a little yawn. Mr. Firay smirked at her, now pulling out of the parking lot. "Red seemed very worried about you," he commented casually.

"Yeah," Daphne responded with a small laugh. "That's just her though. She's so protective over me. I'm used to it."

"That's sweet," Mr. Firay responded with a nod. "She's a nice girl."

Daphne sat up. "What's that supposed to mean?" Did Mr. Firay like Red? Well, it wouldn't exactly be bad; they're both over 400 years old. Well, Mr. Firay was older by a few thousand years...

"I don't know," Mr Firay said, still smirking. "Are you jealous?"

"No!" His smirk grew. Daphne took a deep breath, and let it out slowly, letting the subject drop. "Whatever."

It had been one heck of a night. Daphne stole a sidelong glance at Mr. Firay, who was now focusing on the road. His messy blonde hair was more messy than usual, and some of it hung loosely in his face. After a moment, she caught herself staring and blushed. _He's my teacher. Nothing good could come out of liking a teacher. _She had to stop whatever feelings she was beginning to have before they came. Sure, he was a caring, handsome, strong, intelligent man, but that was all.

Daphne always snorted. Who was she kidding? He was like the dream guy, well besides the ex-gangster part. And being a sparkly fairy. But that aside, he was still the type of guy all the girls wanted. And here Daphne was, sitting in his car all alone with him, trying to stop herself from having feelings for him. A wry smile graced her lips.

"How do I get to your house?" Mr. Firay asked suddenly, breaking the silence. "I think I remember it being somewhere around here..."

"Just go down this street," she told him, pointing to the street that was coming to their right.

He put his blinker on and made a sharp turn, making Daphne fall against the window. He let out a small snicker and she glared at him, turning her head, and looking out the window. To her surprise, Mr. Firay remembered which house was hers. She looked up at the large, empty, dark house, immediately scolding herself for not even leaving the outside light on.

"Is anyone home?" Mr. Firay asked, staring up at my house.

"My mom is staying over a friend's house due to work," she told him, unbuckling her seatbelt. "She won't be back until tomorrow afternoon. And my dad's with my brother in Trenton for a business meeting."

Mr. Firay frowned. "Are you going to be alright alone?"

Daphne shrugged. "I guess. I've done it before...well not the whole night but close enough." Opening the door, she hopped out, sticking her head back in for a second. "Thanks for the ride. I'll see you Monday."

"Sure," Mr. Firay responded, looking at her apprehensively. "You sure you'll be alright?"

"Don't worry, I'm fine."

Mr. Firay looked like he was about to say more, but before he could Daphne shut the car door. He stayed in the driveway, his headlights lighting up the way to her front door for her as she climbed the path, digging in her front pockets for her keys. When she couldn't locate them, she frowned, sticking her hand in her other pocket. They both came up empty. Now beginning to panic, she checked her back pockets and came up short again. She looked under the mat for the spare key. It wasn't there. A groan of frustration left her lips and in one last urge of hope, she tried the door, hoping she forgot to unlock it. It didn't budge.

"You're kidding me," Daphne muttered, glaring at the door. Now what?

Mr. Firay honked his horn and she jumped violently, turning around to glare at his car. He honked again, and she slowly made her way back down to the bottom of the driveway. Opening the passenger side, she stuck her head in to frown at him. "What?"

"Why aren't you going inside?" he demanded, leaning over to look at her better.

She blushed in embarrassment and looked to the ground, wondering if she should tell him the truth or not. "I, er...lost my keys."

"Don't you have a spare?"

"It must be inside or something..."

"What are you going to do?" he questioned, frowning at me. "And what about Red?"

"I'll just tell Red to sleep over at Ariana's and ask if I can spend the night there too," she told him, pulling out her cell phone. She pressed the ON button a few times before she remembered it was dead. Daphne groaned in frustration, putting it back in her pocket. She didn't know either of their numbers by heart.

"Guess I'll be camping," Daphne muttered, straightened up. "See you."

"Whoa, wait!" Mr. Firay cried, and she stopped, looking at him curiously. "You're not going to stay outside all night," he told her in a firm voice.

She rolled her eyes. "What am I supposed to do then? Break into my own house?"

Mr. Firay smirked.

"No, I'm not doing that."

He laughed. "No, I'm not telling you to break into your house. You're coming to my house for the night."

She blinked at him. "What?"

"Get in," he ordered.

"Um, I don't know..."

He raised an eyebrow. "What? Do you want to stay out in the cold?"

Daphne shook her head. "No, but..."

"But what?"

"You're my teacher," Daphne murmured, ducking her head. "I don't think it's a good idea."

Mr. Firay let out a long sigh. "It'd be worse of me to leave my student out in the cold all night, wouldn't it? Teachers are supposed to help their pupils. Now get in before I force you in."

Daphne glared at him. "Please?"

"You don't need to say please," he responded with a smug smile. "We both know you want to come over."

"Now don't be too modest," she muttered, dropping into the passenger's seat. "I'm only doing this because I don't have anywhere else to go."

"Whatever you say, Daphne."

Daphne stared out the window, refusing to let him get on her nerves. There were butterflies in her stomach as he pulled out of her driveway, heading back down her street. Contrary to her words, she actually was excited to be going to his house-even if he was only helping her because he felt bad.

**A/N. **Oh. My. Crackers. Gosh you people! I'm so tired because of writing this, and I'm supposed to stay awake so I can welcome my aunt at the airport!...but I don't blame you, this is a good chapter! Ooooh, sleepover! Lol, I thought this chapter was pretty nice...I think the next is awesomesauce. An update might be...Sunday? Just around...

TODAY IS MY FAVORITE BOOK CHARACTER'S BIRTHDAY! HAPPY BIRTHDAY HOLLYWOOD! (Not the actually Hollywood but a person...) You guys don't know her, but she's awesome. :D I forgot the book though...heh. -.-'

Umm, so yeah! What did you hate? Love? Any critics? Flames? Praises? Chocolates? Marshmallows? The power to make time faster so I can pick up my relatives at the airport?

Sorry for any errors...it's 9:16 and I should be taking a nap so I can pick up my aunt and her family later.

So...yeah! See you Sunday! (Most likely)

~Lara


	11. Chapter 11:

**A/N.**...*sniffles*

I FEEL SO BAD! *bursts into tears* I feel selfish. I'm sorry for announcing that I'm depressed when having 10 chapters and 70+ reviews. It's just that my (well, not anymore) friend told me 'a story isn't good unless you have ten reviews for each chapter' or something like that. So, ten chapters should have 100 reviews (according to her D':). She had been bagging on me these few weeks. We don't talk anymore but it was eating me. So sorry you guys.

And to Doglover231: Thanks for the info! I know there were flaws in the chapter. If you had read my bottom A/N note of last chapter, you'd have known that I stayed up to write that chapter just for you and my other friends. I also stayed up for studying and my relatives coming.

Okay, enough of this serious atmosphere; let's see what's going to happen in MS's apartment, shall we? ^^ And let me assure you:

**NO CREEPY, PEDOPHILE-Y, GROSS THINGS ARE GOING TO HAPPEN!** So for those with 'that' mind, get your mind out of the gutter, please. :) This story is rated T, not M for a reason. It's Rated T for violence and cursing-that's it. No creepy, pedophile-ic images will be displayed in the story (C'mon people! I'm only _13_!).

**Oh, one more seriously important thing. If Fanfiction, Youtube, Facebook, or your other favorite website were to be banned from the Internet, what would you do? Well, the government is about to pass that law RIGHT NOW! We must save our websites! Go to my profile and click the link that says 'American Censorship Day', and we may just be able to save these awesome websites!**  
><strong><br>Chapter 11**:** Your Average Sleepover**

"This is my apartment," Mr. Firay said, opening the white oak door to apartment two hundred and fifteen. "Sorry, it's kind of messy...I'm missing a lady's hand, you know?"

Raising an eyebrow at him, Daphne stepped into the apartment. Just before, Mr. Firay had explained to her that his mother left him an enormous amount of money, but was told to share it equally with his brother. Instead, he gave Puck most of the money and had enough left to buy himself the necessities. He bought an apartment, furniture, a car, and had enough money left for whatever else he wanted. Daphne tried to look at his apartment. It was too dark to see anything so she stood idly by the door, feeling Mr. Firay brush past her. Seconds later, light flooded the room. She surveyed the room while slipping off her shoes. It seemed like Mr. Firay liked to color code. A loveseat, a recliner, and a couch that surrounded a large plasma television were all made out of the same crimson leather that matched the color of the paint on the walls. White pillows were set up on the furniture, matching the trimming of the room. There was a deep brown coffee table in the middle of the furniture, and on it was a small bowl of candy, filled with M&Ms. A large shelf of DVDs was set up next to the television.

There were a few magazines and newspapers scattered around on the ground, a few dishes were on the coffee table, and a few jackets were tossed on the back of the furniture, but other than that it looked rather clean to the Grimm girl. Especially for a single man living alone.

"It's actually a nice place," she finally commented, going over to the leather sofa and pushing her hand into it. "And clean."

Mr. Firay chuckled, picking up some of the dishes off the coffee table. "Thanks. Are you hungry?"

As of on cue, her stomach grumbled. She looked down in embarrassment while Mr. Firay sniggered.

"I'll take that as a yes. I'll order some pizza because it's too late to cook, so take a seat and make yourself at home. Is pepperoni alright?"

"Yep."

Mr. Firay disappeared into the kitchen and Daphne walked up to the TV picking up a photo off the stand, looking at it. A younger Mr. Firay stood with Titania and Oberon. All looked regal in the photo, but Mr. Firay was the only one with a carefree grin on, his messy blonde hair falling in his eyes. His jaw had the same low, square structure as it did in the present. Smiling, Daphne set the picture down and wandered out of the living room, going into the hallway attached.

The first door Daphne saw was open, revealing a very clean and white bathroom. For a moment, she was tempted to see what kind of shampoo Mr. Firay used but she forced herself away. What was she, a stalker? The next door was the laundry room-which showed Mr. Firay's true nature. He may have lived a pretty fancy life while his parents were alive, which made Daphne believe that he must've had someone else to do his laundry, being the son of the King of Faerie. Piles of laundry that nearly reached the ceiling resided there. Daphne quickly shut the door and moved on. The last room was Mr. Firay's bedroom.

Pausing by the door, Daphne stuck her head in and looked around. It was a pretty average room. The walls were brown, and the floor was made out of oak wood. Another large flat screen TV was on the wall, and there was a big, brown, leather couch across from it. A large king sized bed was placed against the far corner of the room. To Daphne's surprise, it was made. Maybe her teacher _did _do some work when he was younger. The comforter was the same color as the walls, and the pillow sheets lighter shades of brown and white. Mr. Firay was _very _coordinated.

Just as she sat down on the leather couch in the living room, Mr. Firay came out of the kitchen, holding the phone. He put it back on the receiver by the door and took a seat on the couch next to Daphne, turning on the TV. "Do you want to watch anything in particular?" he inquired, giving her a sidelong glanced.

She shook her head, keeping her hands clasped tightly on her lap. Mr. Firay flipped the channel to a basketball game, turning up the volume. Daphne's palms grew sweaty and she quickly wiped them on her pants. _What was there to be nervous about?_ _Oh yeah. I'm alone with my teacher, in _his _apartment, on _his _couch, with these feelings I was trying to force away before they came! _This situation wasn't helping at all-but it wasn't like Daphne had any other choice. No one liked sleeping outside in the cold. And no one in his or right mind would choose that over going to spend the night at someone like Mr. Firay's house.

"And that's why you don't give the ball to Richardson," Mr. Firay suddenly muttered as the crowd on TV booed.

A small laugh escaped Daphne's lips and she quickly covered her mouth with her hand. Mr. Firay turned and rose an eyebrow. "What?"

"Nothing...I just never would have guessed you were so...normal, you know?" Daphne told him with a shrug. "It's weird."

"What do you mean?" he asked slowly, his eyebrows knitting together in confusion.

_Boy did he look cute when he was confused_-Daphne violently shook her head, feeling her face heat up. She couldn't be having those thoughts!

Mr. Firay tilted his head to the side. "Well?"

Daphne snapped out of her thoughts, shrugging at him. "I don't even know. I just thought you'd like, come home and read about cooking or something. Or start beating up a punching bag. Or play with fairy magic, or that your house would be messy. You know, stuff like that."

Mr. Firay laughed. "For your information, I don't play with any magic. I was given the element to shape shift and to tell when someone's lying, yes, but that's it. I don't need to use those very often. Sorry to disappoint you, but I am a normal person as well. Kind of."

"I'm not disappointed," Daphne responded without thinking.

Mr. Firay stared at her for a moment before shrugging and turning back to the television. Daphne blushed again and focused on the soccer game on the TV. After about twenty minutes, the doorbell rang. Mr. Firay stood up and went to answer it, opening the door to reveal the pizza guy. A few minutes later, Mr. Firay closed the door, pizza in hand. "Do you need a plate?" he asked, coming back over to the couch.

Daphne shook her head. "Nope, I'm good."

"Good, now I won't have to wash as many dishes," he responded, setting the pizza box down between them.

Mr. Firay opened it and took a piece out. Daphne copied him, picking up the warm piece of pizza and bringing it to her lips. The cheese slid off, burning her fingers and mouth, so she quickly let go. It landed on her pants, now burning her leg through the pants. "Ow, ow, ow," she muttered, picking the pizza up and tossing it back into the box. "_So _un-gravy."

"Good job," Mr. Firay commented, smirking.

Daphne pursed her lips at him before turning to the mess on her pants. "Napkin, please?"

"Here?" he said, reaching to his side and tossing her a few napkins.

She wiped off the pizza sauce and cheese the best she could, but there was still a large stain left on her pants. Sighing, she put the dirty napkins on the top part of the pizza box, letting the next piece she took cool off before eating it.

By the time the game was over, the pizza was gone (thanks to Daphne's vacuum-like stomach) and she was half asleep on the couch. Mr. Firay stood up, picking up the pizza box as he did so. Daphne stood up as well, and followed him into the kitchen drowsily. The clock on the kitchen wall read one in the morning. A yawn escaped Daphne's lips, and she rubbed her eyes tiredly.

"Follow me," Mr. Firay ordered.

Daphne did as he asked and followed him back to his bedroom. He dug around in his dresser for a few moments before tossing her a pair of pajama bottoms and a t-shirt. She looked at them, then at Mr. Firay, confused.

"Wear those to sleep in. I don't want you wearing your dirty pants in my bed."

She stared at him, her eyes widening. _What did he mean in his bed? _Was he expecting her to sleep with him? He must've seen her bewildered expression because he chuckled, a smirk gracing his lips again. "Don't worry, I'm not going to take advantage of you. I'll be sleeping on the couch." He pointed to the brown leather couch in the corner.

"I'll sleep on that instead," she said quickly. "It's fine."

"No," he responded sternly. "You're the guest, so that means you get the bed. And you're a girl. Now go to the bathroom and change. However, if you want to change in front of me, I'm not stopping you."

Daphne blushed and shook her head violently, heading towards the bathroom. After shutting the door and locking it, she stripped and pulled on the pajama bottoms and t-shirt. Both articles of clothing were way too big for her, so she had to tie the pajama bottoms' string tightly. The bottom of the t-shirt reached mid-thigh. She used the toilet and washed her face before going back to the bedroom. Mr. Firay was in the middle of taking off his shirt. He looked over at Daphne with an amused expression.

"Sorry!" she apologized, looking away as her cheeks immediately warmed.

"It's fine," Mr. Firay responded. "I sleep without a shirt on."

Daphne looked back over at him; he was now completely shirtless. He went searching in his dresser again and she took the opportunity to check out his naked chest. If she was some sort of a squealing fan girl, she would probably be having a nosebleed right now. He had well defined abs. Not surprising, since he was an ex-gangster. He really had a nice body. Daphne shook her head, mentally slapping herself repeatedly. She couldn't check out her teacher! It was wrong!

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow. "Are you checking me out?"

"No!"

He chuckled. "Whatever you say."

A yawn escaped her lips when she opened them to defend herself. Mr. Firay smirked again, nodding towards the bed. "Get in," he ordered.

Immediately, she hurried over to the bed, pausing next to it awkwardly for a second before climbing into it. The sheets were cold as she quickly pulled them over her body. Mr. Firay went over to the light switch and turned it off, darkness flooding the room. His silhouette was illuminated by the moonlight as he returned to the couch. He let out a quiet sigh, flopping onto his back on it. "Night, Daphne."

"Night," she responded quietly. Her heart was beating excitedly at the thought of being in Mr. Firay's bed. She took a deep breath and a pleasant scent filled her nose-Mr. Firay's scent. A quiet sigh escaped her lips. This was wrong, but she couldn't help herself from being feelings happy.

Her stormy thoughts kept her awake for a while. The sound of Mr. Firay's even breathing also kept her distracted. Sleep crept on her like a ninja, and before she knew it, Daphne was off in dreamland.

Something hot was covering Daphne's back. Her eyes opened groggily, seeing only the blackness of the room. She attempted to roll over, but whatever was covering her back wasn't going anywhere. That's when she noticed the arm under her. Her eyes widened in surprise as she next took in the arm over her. Then she noticed who the arms were attached to. Her head slowly turned to see Mr. Firay's chiseled, sleeping face right next to hers. Se swallowed nervously, trying to move herself out of his grasp without waking him. His naked chest was moving up and down slowly as he breathed. Daphne resisted the urge to touch him.

_When did he climb into the bed? Why did he? _She struggled to slide out of his arms, but they suddenly tightened up. A small groan of frustration left her lips. This wasn't good. His arms were revealing her true thoughts. She really didn't want to move away from his arms. What she wanted was to snuggle closer to him and go back to sleep. But there was no way she could do that.

Whatever happened to her commitment of stopping her feelings before they became too much? It didn't seem like she was doing a very good job. Her stomach was tingling from her awareness of his body so close to hers. Shaking her head, she held in a sigh. What was wrong with her? _How could I have feelings for this devil of a teacher? _Daphne glanced back at his peaceful face and caught her breath. He was really handsome...

Suddenly, something entered her field of vision. She froze, her breath catching once again. But not because of Mr. Firay. A rather large, brown spider was crawling on the pillow in her direction. Immediately, she screamed, shoving back violently, knocking Mr. Firay off the bed and going with him. She struggled frantically, trying to escape the tangle of sheets they were caught in.

"What's wrong?" Mr. Firay demanded, sitting up, his hands made into fists.

"Spider!" she gasped, crawling over his chest, and finally leaving the tangled mess of the sheets.

He blinked at Daphne for a second before chuckling. Pushing himself to his feet, he peered over the bed. "Where?"

"Pillow!" If there was anything Daphne was more afraid of than thugs, it was spiders. Back in Ferryport Landing, seeing that teacher dead, wrapped in cobwebs and drained of his blood made a fear of spiders born to Daphne Grimm. And now she couldn't stand to look at anyone whose name was Toby.

She watched as he reached over the pillow, scooping up the creepy crawler. He came over to Daphne, smirking, and held it out toward her face. "Stop!" she cried, scrambling back away from him.

"It's harmless," he told her, letting it crawl around his hand. "See?"

"Bring it outside," she begged, giving him the puppy-dog look.

He looked at Daphne with an amused expression. "Don't you want me to kill it?"

"Why? It didn't do anything."

Mr. Firay stared at Daphne for a moment, his face twisted into an unrecognizable expression. "That's different," he finally commented quietly. "Alright, I'll bring it outside."

He disappeared out the door and Daphne took the time to recollect herself. She picked up the blanket and sheets she had knocked to the floor and tossed them back on the bed. Then she went to the bathroom and quickly washed her face. When she was done, she wandered out to the living room just as Mr. Firay was coming back in. He let out a yawn, the muscles in his arm flexing as he stretched. Daphne's eyes ran over his toned stomach involuntarily and she blushed, looking away quickly.

"Boy it was hot last night," he commented, rubbing his stomach.

"I wonder why," Daphne responded sharply, glaring at him accusingly.

He held his hands up in defense. "I got cold, okay? I didn't think it'd matter if I just slept on the other side of the bed...if it makes you feel any better, I was hoping I'd wake up earlier than you so you wouldn't notice.

Daphne rolled her eyes. "How would that make me feel better?"

He shrugged.

"Mr. Firay-"

"Matt," he corrected her.

"You can't sleep in the same bed as me! You're a teacher and I'm a student! It's wrong."

"We aren't at school," he responded with a frown. "And I know it's wrong. That's why I didn't try anything with you."

She stared at him, her mouth slightly open.

"Joking," he added quickly, but a smirk came on to his face. "But you look extremely cute while you sleep."

Daphne's face burned and she quickly adverted her gaze. He was unbelievable. He wasn't helping her situation at all! She knew Mr. Firay didn't know what her situation was, but she was falling deeper and deeper into a hole that would be very difficult to climb out of. Calling her cute was just digging it deeper. But she couldn't deny it anymore. They were her feelings, and she had to deal with them.

Daphne was falling for her home economics teacher.

**A/N. **I don't like the ending sentence. Should I have just written, 'Daphne was falling for her teacher' or kept the 'home economics' in there?

Anyways, I bet you expected something more. ;D Sorry. We get more of the plot next chapter.

Sorry this is so late! (Than usual. I usually update in the afternoon on Sundays or at 9:00) I forgot we were going out today for my cousin's birthday (we ate at Red Lobster!) and didn't have time to finish typing this up until 9 or so. You have no idea how long this took to write. I had to keep switching from iPad to iPhone to Laptop, then back to iPad, and Laptop. Everyone needed to use the technologies at some point. -.-'

Let's see...anything else I need to add? Um, today's my cousin's 4th birthday, so HAPPY BIRTHDAY BELAY-LAI (sounds like Beh-lie-lie)!

An update may come...Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. You know-the usual. OR! Thursday since it's Thanksgiving.

Chao!  
>~LαΓα<p> 


	12. Chapter 12:

**A/N.** Thanks, you guys, for your wonderful encouragement and thoughtfulness! Thanks for your support too. I now don't care about my ex-friend and her rubric of a good story. Like I've said about a billion times, muchos gracias for being great friends. :3

:D I'm feeling _jolly good _today. This _chapta shall_ be introducing a new _characta!_ Sorry for my weird wording. I'm kind of in LaLa land about the new character. He's British. *fawns* Lol. By the way, I imagine the new guy as Alex Pettyfer, but with brown hair. His amazing green eyes stay the same! ^^

Anyways, RockstarGurl4444 said she liked how last chapter's title contrasted with what the chapter was about. So, I shall do the same with this! Actually, it's partly contrasted. You'll see how. XD

Um, one more thing. Does anyone remember that spoiler I gave out, where Daphne and Mustardseed talk about how he rebelled against his father and then there was a knock on the door, and it was Mustardseed's friend? Well, that might be changed because of this chapter. His friend is introduced in here, but the introduction's going to be different from the spoiler I gave out. :3 Just a heads up.

I said one more thing, but I promise this is the last. You all notice I update at night, right? Mostly. And that's because I finish writing the chapters _at _night. And most of you have noticed I write 'Matt' instead of 'Matt' or 'Mustardseed', 'Casey' instead of 'Ariana' and maybe 'Holly' instead of 'Daphne'. Well, that's because I keep writing down my favorite characters from this book. This is called FanFiction, so it's not illegal, but Mustardseed's new personality is based on a guy named Matt, Ariana is based on Casey, and Daphne is kind of based on Holly. Some of Holly's traits are with Daphne, and some of Daphne's are with Holly's. So, I'm sorry I keep mixing up the words. I finish these chapters at night and I never really focus. It's hard, really. I have writer blocks inbetween sections of the chapters and when I get ideas, I wrote them down so fast that I don't notice myself changing the names. So, sorry about that. :3 I'll bee looking over the chapters and fixing that, but please point out whenever I do another mistake like that, okay? Thanks! ^^

Okay, I'm done giving spoilers for this chapter. Read on!

**Chapter 12: Pleasant Foods and Jolly News**

An abundant arrangement of food was set out before Daphne when she walked into the kitchen about an hour gaped at the tempting buffet in astonishment. Mr. Firay's smug face greeted her when she finally looked up from the food.

"Why did you make so much?" Daphne inquired, gesturing towards the wide arrangement of food.

"I don't know what you like, so I just made a bit of everything," Mr. Firay responded with a casual shrug. Daphne gave him a 'Are you kidding me?' look. Mr. Firay had cooked _all _her favorites for breakfast, from normal to bizarre. There we home fries, pancakes with glowing pink syrup, scrambled egg, green eggs with ham, blue orange juice, fairy nectar, French toast and much, _much _more.

"A bit?" she choked, looking at the enormous stacks of French toast and pancakes.

"Does it not look appetizing?"

"No, that's not it!" she uttered quickly. "It's just...I thought you couldn't cook abnormal food."

Mr. Firay chuckled, putting a hand on her shoulder and steering her to the table. He pushed Daphne down on one of the wooden chairs and proceeded to take the seat across from her. "I lied. I'm from a mythical, _abnormal _world, right?"

Daphne opened her mouth to retort, but he cut her off. "Well, let's not waste it, shall we?" he asked.

She nodded meekly, biting back her retort, still in shock by the enormous amount of food he had made in just under an hour. The French toast was calling her name, so she took two pieces, setting them on her plate. She drizzled some pink, bubbly syrup on it and used a knife to cut off a small piece. Cautiously, Daphne put it up to her mouth, hesitating for a moment. Mr. Firay was staring at her so she abruptly shut her feeling, feeling a blush coming on her face. He frowned.

"Are you afraid to try it?" he asked.

Daphne shook her head. "No...I'm just not comfortable eating while people are staring at me."

Mr. Firay smirked. "I see."

He put his elbow on the table and rested his chin on his hand, gazing at Daphne more intensely then before. She glowered at him. He was doing it on purpose. She wanted to slap that stupid, sexy smirk right off his face. Wait, _sexy? _Daphne mentally slapped herself. She couldn't be having those thoughts. Especially after she had spent the night in the same bed as him. It was wrong. How many times did she have to tell herself that? _Maybe you should just accept it, _a thoughtful voice commented in her head.

Mr. Firay's phone suddenly went off. Daphne knew his ringtone by heart now. She took the time that he looked away from her to stuff a piece of French toast in her mouth. It felt like she had just taken a bite of heaven. She chewed slowly and swallowed, trying to savor the taste. Mr. Firay was still looking at his phone so Daphne quickly shoved a few more pieces into her mouth.

When he looked back up, she was in the middle of chewing all the pieces that were in her mouth. Her cheeks were blown out just like a squirrel's were when it had nuts in its mouth. Mr. Firay snorted, trying to keep his face straight. Daphne's face flushed in embarrassment and she quickly tried to swallow the rest of the French toast without chewing. She managed to get half down before choking. Heaving, she covered her mouth with her hand, her embarrassment continuing to grow as she choked.

Mr. Firay was in all out laughter now. Daphne continued to hack into her hand until her throat was cleared. Before she swallowed the rest of food in her mouth, she chewed it slowly and thoroughly. Mr. Firay was still laughing. She glared at him. "It's not that funny," she told him, her cheeks flaming.

"Yes it is," Mr. Firay responded, shaking his head, trying not to laugh. "But I'm glad you like it so much."

"It's really good," she admitted, looking down at her plate. "I can even compare it to Granny Relda's. It's mucho gravy!"

"Well eat some other things too," Mr. Friday enjoined, waving his arm over the food. "I suggest trying the home fries. They are my specialty."

Daphne opened her mouth to say something in return when Mr. Firay's phone went off again. He scowled and she shut her mouth quickly as he opened it.

"These girls just don't leave me alone," he muttered, tapping away at his phone.

"Who?" she asked, trying to sound nonchalant. She couldn't help but be curious. She was a Grimm, after all.

"Some girls from your class," he told her with a sigh. "I gave them my phone number because they thought they were going to have trouble with their practice cooking at home. I told them they could text me if they had any questions, but they've been texting me about other things."

Daphne felt a pang of jealousy in her gut, and it surprised her. Was she jealous just because those girls had Mr. Firay's phone number while she didn't? It was so shallow that Daphne wanted to grab something hard and repeatedly strike her head with it. Preferably a magic rock made of steel. "Um, why don't you tell them to stop texting you?" she suggested.

Mr. Firay shook his head. "I'm not the mean teacher, remember?"

"But that's not being mean!" she responded quickly. "I mean you are a teacher and they are students. They shouldn't be texting you in the first place. I don't understand why you'd give them a personal number. Why not an e-mail or something?" Daphne knew she was babbling so she quickly shut herself up, grabbing a glass of juice in front of her and putting it up to her lips before she could say anything more.

Mr. Firay chuckled slightly. "Are you jealous?"

Daphne coughed out her drink. The juice dribbled down her chin as she stared at Mr. Firay's complacent face. Just as he opened her mouth to deny his accusation, a loud pounding from the door sounded abruptly. She jumped, slopping the juice over her shirt. An annoyed groan left her lips, and she peeled away the wet cloth from her skin. Mr. Firay snickered and stood up, walking out of the kitchen to answer the door. Daphne looked around for a napkin and when she spotted one, she grabbed it and began to dab at her wet shirt.

Muffled voices came from the living room as she picked up a home fry with her fork. As Daphne expected, it tasted excellent. Mr. Firay was a really good cook. She popped a few more in her mouth and chewed them slowly, trying to make out the voices in the other room. When she heard footsteps returning to the kitchen, she turned in her chair. Mr. Firay came in with another man behind him.

Daphne gawked at the man behind Mr. Firay for a moment. He had messy, chestnut hair and bright green eyes. He was exactly Mr. Firay's height, and had almost the same build-except this guy was a little more buff. To Daphne's ongoing amazement, he looked like he was only about eighteen years old!

When their gazes met, the guy's jaw dropped. His eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head. "Holy shit," he uttered in a British accent, turning to look at Mr. Firay. "Holy shit, Matt."

"Shut up," Mr. Firay hissed, jamming his elbow into his friend's side.

"Look at her," the brunette murmured, staring intently at Daphne. "Hey."

It took her a minute to realize he was speaking to her. "Hi," she responded in a quiet voice, his intimidating look getting the best of me.

The brown haired man chuckled, nudging Mr. Firay in the side. "What did you do to her?"

"Nothing," Mr. Firay responded, sounding annoyed with the man. "Why did you follow me into my kitchen?"

"Because I have something to tell this pretty little lady," the brunette informed Mr. Firay.

"How could you possibly have something to tell her if you've never met her?" Mr. Firay responded with a sigh.

The chestnut haired man came over to Daphne and squatted down to her sitting height. He grinned at her and Daphne returned with her own broad, but sheepish smile. He held out his hand and she took it. He squeezed her hand hard, nearly crushing her. "My name's Sage," he apprised me. "You're Daphne, right? Interesting name." He shot a secretive smile at Mr. Firay that she didn't understand. Mr. Firay game Sage a flat look.

"How do you know my name?" Daphne asked curiously.

Sage laughed. "News travels quickly."

"News?" Daphne shot a look at Mr. Firay who rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Yeah. How you got in a fight with the second in command of our gang." Sage told her, smiling slightly.

"I didn't really get in a fight with him..."

He laughed. "Even so, you're in a little trouble."

"What? Why?" Daphne's pulse increased significantly. _I was in trouble? _What did that mean?

"Because technically, you have opposed the gang," Sage explained. "And also because you were trying to help Matt at the scene. That was reported."

"That doesn't have anything to do with her," Mr. Firay cut in. "It's not like they'll gang up on her...she's a girl."

Sage shook his head. "Times have changed since you left, Matt." _Matt? Did Sage know Mr. Firay was a fairy? _Daphne's mental question was unanswered as Mr. Firay spoke.

"They attack girls now?" Mr. Firay asked skeptically.

"Yeah. That asshole, Bryant, took over now."

Mr. Firay shook his head in disbelief. "Bryant? Are you kidding me? They couldn't have chosen someone worse."

"I know," Sage responded with a nod. "Which is why I came to warn little Daphne here."

"Warn me for what? What are they going to do?" Daphne's eyes were as wide as saucers as she stared at the pair of men before her.

"Well, they might target you," Sage enlightened her. "Either as bait to lure Matt somewhere since they still have hard feelings from what happened, or for revenge for getting in a fight with the second in command."

"But I didn't do anything," she responded, feeling panic beginning to course through her. "Are they going to kill me? Are they going to do what they did to Mr. Firay? What's going to happen to me?"

Her hands were shaking now and her eyes were wide as she stared at the pair of men before her. She didn't know a single thing about gangs! She did know, however, that they could kill and rape people and get away with it. But they wouldn't kill or..._rape _someone for just getting into a small fight, right? Daphne tried to calm herself, taking deep breaths and letting them out slowly. _Nothing was going to happen to me._

"Look! You've got her all worked up now!" Mr. Firay accused Sage, coming over to Daphne, putting a hand on her shoulder and pressuring it gently.

"I'm sorry, but it's better if she knows so she can be more on her guard," Sage responded, frowning at her.

"Why would they go after her though? It's not like she's of any importance," Mr. Firay said to Sage. "It's me they're after."

"But she was with you back when you were attacked the other night," Sage pointed out. "That can be misleading. For example, they could think you're rallying people to make your own gang. And if she's some kind of magical being, they'll think you're forming an Everafter gang. Or if she was your girlfriend, they could use her for bait. Stuff like that."

Daphne blinked. "Wait, you know about Everafters? Then why do you call Mr. Firay, Matt?"

Sage smirked. "He and I are best friends. You think I wouldn't know? And I only call him Mustardseed when I want to get on his nerves or am really serious. Which is never."

"Are you an Everafter?" Daphne asked.

Sage flipped his hair from his eyes. "No, but I have the power to attract women with this sexy face."

Daphne's teacher rolled his eyes. "Of course. Not. Now, back to the gang."

"Oh yeah, they could also make her turn against you if you two were in some kind of fight. They might do that if you had some kind of relationship with her."

"We're just student and teacher," Daphne tried to assure Sage.

Mr. Firay muttered a few curses. "I can't just have a peaceful life, can I?"

Sage laughed. "That's what you get after what you did."

"What did you do?" Daphne asked Mr. Firay, calmed down now.

"I told you," he replied smoothly.

She frowned at him. "No...you just told me why you joined. Not anything that happened or why you left."

"Well it doesn't matter," he responded quickly. "Eat more food."

Daphne frowned and put some green eggs and bacon on her plate. Sage and Mr. Firay went into the other room to talk in private. Scowling, Daphne shoved the eggs into her mouth. Her scowl faded into a small smile at the taste. How could she be angry with this delicious food in front of her?

But the food didn't change the fact that Daphne was now involved with some kind of gang. And to make it worse, there were Everafters that had magic in the gang. And lastly, Daphne didn't know how dangerous it was going to be.

**A/N.** Grah. Sorry it's short-ish. I have _another _book report due this week and I'm cramming time. But I hope you liked it anyways! :D

Umm...let's see, do I have anything to add? Nope. I don't think so except that MY COUSINS ARE STILL SO CUTE! Aww, Xavier's chewing on my homework...OH MY GOSH! :O

Shoot. I guess I have to redo my math. -.-' Until next week (most likely)!

~Lara

PS. Questions? Comments? Critics? Review them then! XD


	13. Chapter 13:

**A/N..** *monotone voice* How are you all? I'm feeling...erugh. Not so great. I think I made an error in my chapter planning. I don't think I was supposed to add Red in, and I was actually supposed to replace her with some other character...You know what? I'm going to just add another character. Hope you don't mind. This is so messed up right now, but :P. Red is probably going to become a minor character now. Ish. Maybe. I don't know...

*not-as-monotone voice* HOLY FRICKIN WATTY! I'm so sorry this is late! I have Midterms (another blockage next to Science Fair GAH!) and I need to pass. Yeah I have all A's but my dad says if I get all A+'s for this semester, I get another 25$ (If I get all A+ for this school year, in total, I get 100$; so far, I have 25$). It's my motivation. :3

Also, if any of you are wondering, I don't believe I told you what I got for my Science Fair, did I? *thoughtful look* Well, the Award ceremony was...November 16 or so? About. And...I ACTUALLY STEPPED ON THE STAGE! (Very few smart people go up; it's like JUST going on the stage's an honor) So I was hyperventilating and I got Honorable Mention. I freaked out on the inside. I was so happy! Even if it wasn't like 1st, 2nd, or 3rd, I feel accomplished. But I think I got HM because this boy named Drew also did a musical experiment. I think he copied me. *stink eye* Grr...

Now that we're past all that, here's the next chapter!

**Chapter 13: Boys Are Confusing**

Mr. Firay pulled into Daphne's drive way and drove all the way to the top of it. When he stopped the car and looked over at her.

"Is your mom home yet?"

"Not yet. Her car isn't in the drive way. Neither is my dad's," she told him, unbuckling her seat belt.

"You're welcome to come back to my house and I can bring you back later," Mr. Firay told Daphne. "I don't mind."

Her first instinct was to say yes, but she bit her tongue to stay quiet. Spending the night at Mr. Firay's was enough. She wasn't sure how much longer she could stay with him before she fell for him more than she already was.

"It's daytime now, so I'll be okay. Not speaking for my dad, but my mom will probably be home soon anyway," she explained, turning to face him. "Thanks for the ride."

"Anytime," Mr. Firay responded.

Daphne reached out to grab the door handle when she felt a hand at her arm. She turned around to see Mr. Firay staring at her curiously.

"What?" she asked, raising a hand to her face subconsciously.

"Huh? Oh," he let go of her arm. "Nothing. Never mind. See you later."

"Okay..."

Daphne turned back around to open the door when something out of the front door caught her attention.

"Oh _olive_."

She turned to Mr. Firay, who was smirking. He glanced over at her and let out a laugh.

"Have fun."

Daphne's plan was to quickly get out of the car and have Mr. Firay leave as soon as possible. When he started rolling down the windows. Daphne stared at him in horror.

"What are you doing?" she hissed, reaching over and trying to shove his hand away from the window control.

He shoved her hand away and stuck his head out the window. He honked the horn before shouting. "Hey, Red! Wendell!"

Red looked up from her head down position on Daphne's front steps, as did the girls' old friend, Wendell Piper. What was he doing here? Daphne didn't know. But just looking at him, Daphne noticed he didn't seem as chubby as before. He still had some baby fat because he chose to age quite slowly, but instead of 12, he looked maybe 16 or so. Wendell looked at the car for a minute in confusion, then his expression turned to shock, and then into suspicion. Red narrowed her eyes at Daphne.

"You are such a jerk," Daphne muttered, narrowing her own eyes at Mr. Firay.

"I know," he responded with a smirk. "Now get out of my car."

Daphne heaved a heavy and irritated sigh before reaching for the door handle. She winged it open and slammed it as hard as she could. She smirked a little to herself when she glanced back and saw Mr. Firay's annoyed expression.

Suddenly, the car horn blasted and Daphne jumped, nearly slipping on the gravel on the driveway. She turned back, her face flushed with embarrassment.

Mr. Firay gestured with his hand for her to come over to his side. She obeyed, only the slight bit reluctant.

He rolled down his window and she stuck her head into it, looking up at Mr. Firay warily.

"What?"

"Be careful."

Daphne rolled her eyes and looked over to give him a sarcastic look when she came face to face with Mr. Firay's serious expression. She blanked for a second, surprised by the intensity of it. All remarks in her head were gone.

Why did he look so serious all of a sudden? For some reason, it made Daphne feel uneasy. But soon Mr. Firay's face turned into a smirk.

"Aw. you look all worried now."

"Who wouldn't?" she demanded angrily, pulling her head back out of the window. "See you later, Mr. Firay."

"Daphne, wait!"

Daphne waved her hand at him in dismissal without looking back. She heard the rev of his engine and then heard it backing up her driveway. Soon, the sound of the car altogether disappeared and she sighed.

Daphne usually didn't mind Mr. Firay teasing her. In fact, she thought she secretly enjoyed it, but when it had to do with her safety, it was a different story. And since it had to do with both Mr. Firay's and her own safety, it was a much different story. But he didn't seem to be taking it too seriously.

"What were you doing with him?" Red demanded when Daphne was in earshot.

Daphne ignored her and turned to Wendell. "Why are you at my house, Wendell? In fact, what are you doing here?"

Wendell said, "My dad has some work with a non-Everafter here, so I had to come along. I saw Red and your friend -Ariana, was it?- and I offered to take Red back since I heard you were near. And the other reason I'm here is to see if you made it home-"

"-If you made it home _safely_ last night," Red cut in, giving Daphne her angry look.

Daphne smiled. "Aw, shucks you guys!" She gave a small welcoming hug to Wendell, but Red pushed her back. Not in the he's-my-man kind of way.

Red rolled her eyes at her friend. "Anyways, back to the main topic; Daphne, what were you doing with Mr. Firay?"

"Mr. Firay? So he's a teacher?" Wendell said, looking suspicious. "You were with your teacher, Daphne?"

"Did you bring your extra key?" Daphne asked Red, trying to avoid the subject.

"Ariana had your extra and gave it to me, so yeah. Now stop trying to change the top-"

"Why didn't you let yourself in?"

"Because I wasn't going to invite myself and Wendell in if no one was here," Red explained, looking slightly irritated. Wendell was as well.

"Well I wanted to go inside now, so can we go in?" Daphne asked, frowning at the pair.

Red shook her head and took the key out of her pocket. She handed it to Daphne and she unlocked the door. Daphne opened the door in relief and sauntered in, relieved to be able to get inside now. Red took the key back out of Daphne's hand and put it in his pocket.

"You're lucky you thought of giving your friend an extra key," Wendell piped in, smirking. "Otherwise you'd be locked out."

Daphne laughed. "I'm glad too. I always seem to lose my keys..."

"Yeah. Remember back in Ferrypo-hey!"

"Hey?" Daphne repeated.

"You're trying to change the subject again!" Red said for Wendell.

She sighed in defeat. "Okay. I stayed at Mu-Mat-err, Mr. Firay's place last night because I was locked out of my house and he didn't want to have me sleep outside by myself. Nothing else." Daphne narrowed her eyes at the two slightly. "We don't have some secret affair going on, and if you think that, Ariana's been getting into your head too often, Red."

Red blushed slightly. "I didn't think that..."

Daphne chuckled and nudged Red in the side with her elbow. "Come on, Red! Me dating teacher? That's gross! Even though he's, you know..." Daphne glanced at Wendell quickly, giving Red the indication that they were not to talk about Puck's brother too much.

"Yeah," Red responded slowly. "You're right. I couldn't ever see you breaking the law by dating a teacher. You're too sweet. And it'd just be wrong."

Daphne frowned slightly. It was okay when Daphne said it herself, but for some reason, she didn't like it when other people said that it was wrong. she especially hated it when they brought up that a relationship like that was illegal. However, Daphne shook those thoughts away quickly.

"I'm going to sleep," Red announced. "Ariana kept me up all night. Worst sleepover." With that, she stalked towards the room she and Daphne were sharing.

"Did you eat already?" Wendell said, leading the Daphne into the kitchen. "My mom showed me how to cook, and I can make you something if you want."

"Nah. Mr. Firay already made me breakfast."

A huge, delicious, seemingly professional breakfast.

Wendell frowned slightly. Daphne mimicked his expression. She had just reunited with one of her closest friends, but why did he always frown whenever she mentioned Mr. Firay? He's frowned at the name since I started talking! He didn't seem to mind when Red mentioned him (he didn't seem so tense), so why her? Was it because I was his really good friend?

But what was he worried about in the first place? Daphne ran a hand through her hair. Why were men so difficult to understand?

"Do you like anyone?" Wendell asked suddenly.

Daphne stared at him curiously. "No, I don't like any one."

"Not even the slightest bit?"

Daphne opened her mouth to say no, but closed it after thinking for a moment.

She couldn't deny that she had a little crush on Mr. Firay. A little, teeny-weeny, itty-bitty crush that any girl would have if they saw him. But she couldn't tell Wendell that. However, she didn't want to lie either. Daphne chewed on her bottom lip and looked at the floor.

"Daphne?"

"Who do you like?" she asked, trying to avoid answering his.

Wendell rolled his eyes. "Like I'm telling you."

"Then I won't tell you who I like," Daphne responded with a smirk.

He narrowed his eyes. "That's not fair."

"It's 'unfair'," she corrected. "And it is too fair: You don't tell me, I don't tell you. It's fair."

"But you said you didn't like anyone!"

"Maybe I lied."

"Never mind, let's just drop it," he responded with a sigh.

Daphne stared, extremely confuzzled. Again, another one of her unusual vocabulary words. Why did Wendell even bring that topic up in the first place? Daphne shook her head. She remembered Wendell being confusing.

"Do you want to go to dinner tomorrow night?"

"Huh?"

"You know, dinner. What you eat at night," he responded sarcastically.

Daphne rolled her eyes at him. "I'll go. Have you asked Red yet?"

Wendell shook his head. "Just you and me."

Daphne shrugged. "Okay."

His face lit up. "Really?"

She nodded. "Why wouldn't I?

Wendell stared at her for a split second with a weird expression before shrugging. "I don't know why you wouldn't want to."

"Well maybe I'm sick of you."

He looked at me with a fake horrified expression. "_Noo!"_

Daphne laughed and nudged him in the shoulder. "You know I can't get tired of you Wendell. I've missed you! Duh! You're like one of my best friends and will always be one of my best friends."

"What if I-" Wendell cut himself off and cleared his throat.

"What if you what?"

"Never mind," he said quickly, forcing a laugh out. "I'm going to go back to my dad's condo, so see you later, Daphne."

"You're leaving already?"

He nodded. "I only came over ot bring Red and to make sure you got home. No other reason. So I'll talk to you later."

"You're too nice," Daphne laughed, giving him a bear hug. "We have to catch up."

"We do," he agreed. "Hey, do you have any idea where Brooklyn Monument High School is? My dad's doing this big project so I'm not going back to Ferryport for awhi-" The rest of his statement was cut off when Daphne attacked him.

"_You're going to go to my school!_" she crowed happily. "Oh my gosh! What grade are you enrolling in?"

Wendell smiled. "That's awesome. And I think you're grade. My dad says that because I was born in April and didn't have to wait a year to start school back in Ferryport, I go in the grade above me. Or something like that."

"I'll see you tomorrow in school then!" she said excitedly, biting down on her palm. She hugged him tightly.

Wendell pushed her away from him. Daphne looked at him in surprise. His expression almost mimicked hers.

"Um, sorry," he apologized, furrowing his brow.

"It's alright..."

He grinned at Daphne for a second before waving and heading out of the kitchen.

**A/N.** Okay. Sorry it's short. And for any misspellings, or changing of names (ex. Holly kicked his butt instead of Daphne kicked his butt). I wrote this whole chapter today and...gosh, I'm tired. I'm so screwed for my science midterms...*appauled face* I'm going to go study now...

Oh! Did I tell you gets I have a facebook? If I have any friends who would like to chat me up, you can friend me (but **message me** saying who you are from FanFiction **FIRST** so I don't think **you're some stalker**). My name's Lara Dee. :D So...yeah! ^^

Let's see...that's all, I think. Goodanighta!

~Lara


	14. Chapter 14:

**A/N. **Boom ba doom ba boom ba doom ba boom...Super Bass is so catchy. Is it weird that I've JUST learned about this song? Whatever. :)

Okay, so I made it in time. I POSTED IT SUNDAY! I was afraid the chapter wouldn't be finished in time for a second. :3 Phew...

WENDELL'S BACK! What was your reaction?

Let's seee...it's almost Christmas! *happy dance* Who's ready to be nice? If you're naughty (and I mean in the bad sense [ex. bullying a 7th grader and getting that 7th grader suspended for no apparent reason], not the...'it' way) well, you won't get to read my Puckabrina one-shot I'm posting! *nods* Strictly for good people (so if you're reading this, you're good!).

No one wants to hear me talk so just read. Sorry if it seems short. I hope sincerely that you like it!

**Chapter 14: Badminton**

Loud, excited talking met Daphne's ears as soon as she opened the locker room door. She frowned, but walked to the changing area to see what all the commotion was about. Ariana was halfway though putting her shirt on when she noticed Daphne.

"Daphne!" she cried, yanking down her shirt quickly. "Guess who's subbing for _a __la clase de gimnasia_?"

She knew right away by all the excited girls, but Daphne decided to play along. "Who?"

"Mr. Firay!"

"Cool," she responded, setting down her gym bag and starting to take off her shirt.

"Why aren't you more excited?" she asked, tossing her clothes in one of the lockers, and for once, speaking a full sentence without Spanish.

"Why should I be excited?" Daphne responded, unbuttoning her pants. "This just means all the girls will be trying to impress him."

"Well, I think you should be happy, _tu debe ser feliz_."

"Why's that?"

Ariana winked. "He gets to see you in your _adorable, poco _short-shorts."

She blushed, looking down at the shorts in her hand. "My shorts aren't that short!"

"Still, you never wear shorts, asides from _la gimnasia_."

"He's a teacher, A. I don't think he cares what high school girls look like in short-shorts," Daphne told her friend, rolling her eyes. "When will you get it out of your head that Matt and I have a think for each other?"

"Matt?" she repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"I mean Mr. Firay," Daphne corrected herself quickly.

Ariana smirked. "Sure you did. _Rojo _and your other _amigo_, Wendell, told me how you and Mr. Firay were in the same _carro _together yesterday morning."

She scowled and silently cursed those two. But Daphne had never told him not to tell, so it wasn't all his fault.

"Whatever, let's just go up. Everyone has already finished changing and I bet the bell-"

Before Daphne could finish her sentence, the bell went off. Ariana made a face and together they ran for the stairs that led up to the gym. Daphne pushed the door open and sure enough, there was Mr. Firay with a gaggle of girls surrounding him.

"I want to go talk to him," Ariana complained as Daphne dragged her to where Wendell and Josh were.

"Hey Wendell!" Daphne said cheerfully. "So, how's the school so far?"

"It's awesome," Wendell said grinning. "Much better than our old school. They had too many Ev-err, too many evil bullies!" He caught himself before he said 'Everafter'.

"That's mucho gravy," she said, smiling back. "Are you and Josh friends now?"

"Yep."

"Hey babe," Josh greeted Ariana, giving her a one armed hug.

"_Hola_," she responded with a sigh.

Wendell laughed, patting Josh on the back. "Looks like she was struck by the Firay love bug too."

Ariana laughed while Josh shot Wendell a dirty look.

"_No estoy en el amor_, I'm not in love with the man, Wendell. That would be creepy," Ariana told him, rolling her eyes. "He's just attractive for a man of his age."

"Can we not talk about this?" Josh asked.

"You're still _mi favorito_, Jaw," Ariana told him, enveloping her hand in his.

"Jaw?" Wendell repeated.

"_Si_, Jaw. You know, Josh sounds like 'Jawsh'?"

Daphne frowned to herself and looked at the ground as they talked. Ariana thought it was creepy to be in love with Mr. Firay? _Did that mean I was creepy?_

She quickly slapped herself, earning curious looks from the trio in from of her. She blushed and just shrugged at them.

"A mosquito," she lied.

"In the gym?" Wendell asked with an eyebrow raised.

"I guess so."

Wendell laughed and shrugged. "Whatever, Daphne."

She turned away from her friends so they wouldn't see the blush growing on her face. What was she thinking? She wasn't in love with Mr. Firay! It was a silly crush!

"Oh, Mr. Firay! You have really big muscles!"

Daphne's eyes shot over to where he was. One girl was feeling the muscles on his arms as he flexed for her. Daphne narrowed her eyes slightly, getting irritated. She just wanted to take that girl's arm and rip it off-

She slapped herself again; however, this time mentally. Now what was she doing? Getting jealous? There wasn't anything to be jealous of, and yet, Daphne was getting jealous! She ran a hand over her face and through her hair.

She didn't like these feelings.

"Okay class, gather 'round!"

Daphne looked back at Mr. Firay, who was waving his arms to catch everyone's attention. His eyes locked onto Daphne's and she swore she saw him quickly check her out. Either that or she was just getting ahead of herself. Which was probably more likely.

Wendell pushed Daphne from behind and she stumbled towards Mr. Firay. When everyone was gathered, he cleared his throat.

"Okay guys, we have two choices today. We can either play handball or badminton."

Everyone started to shout what to play all at once. Daphne heard about an even amount of handball and badminton. She personally didn't want to play badminton, since she sucked. She could do almost any sport fairly well. Except badminton. Daphne had no hand-eye coordination whatsoever with a racquet.

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "You can't all shout at once. Raise your hand for handball."

Twenty people raised their hands.

"Badminton?"

Twenty people raised their hands.

A few of the girls twittered with laughter. Daphne rolled her eyes. Because having an even amount of people who wanted to play each sport was just so funny.

Daphne pinched herself on the arm. Great. Now she was thinking mean thoughts about girls that didn't even do anything. Jealousy is such an ugly emotion.

"Well, Daphne, what do you want to play?"

She stared at Mr. Firay. He was going to make her chose? She flushed slightly as all the attention was drawn on her.

"Uh, well...I don't really care. But I'm kind of bad at badminton."

"Well, then badminton it is!"

There was a cheering from the people who wanted badminton and a booing from the people who didn't. Daphne stared at her teacher with a dumbfounded look. He smirked.

"I'll go get the equipment. Come help me, Daphne," he ordered, gesturing her with his finger.

Before she respond, someone pushed passed her.

"I'll help you," a girl named Laura offered, looking eager.

"I will too!" her friend, Sandy, added.

Daphne rolled her eyes, turning around. "Looks like you don't need my help."

"Daphne."

"I'll help," Wendell cut in, an annoyed look on his face. "Girls shouldn't be going down to the locker room anyways."

"Sure," Mr. Firay responded, looking relieved for some reason. "Everyone else set up the nets."

He and Wendell exited the gym to go to the storage room while a bunch of guys took off towards the nets. A few minutes later they returned and the nets were set up. Everyone grabbed a racquet. Daphne held hers glumly and joined Wendell, Ariana, and Josh at one net.

"Ariana and I against you and Wendell," Josh announced, looking at Daphne. "So stay on that side."

"Sure," she responded.

"What? Why am I stuck with her?" Wendell complained, a grin on his face.

Daphne lightly hit him with her racquet. "Shut up, harmonica boy."

He laughed. "Don't worry, I'm good so I'll make up for your lack of ability. You serve first."

Daphne rolled her eyes, but tossed the shuttlecock in the air and swung at it violently. The shuttle fell to the ground and Daphne sighed, picking it up. She threw it up again. No luck.

"You can do it, D!" Ariana cheered from the other side.

She gave her a flat look and tried once more. She missed yet again. Daphne scowled; frustrated now. She threw it up and swung her racquet as hard as she could. Not only did she miss, but her racquet also went flying out of her hand.

Daphne gasped, twisting around to see it nearly hit Tom. He turned to her, his face in shock. She grinned sheepishly. He shook his head at her.

"Be right back," Daphne told Wendell, and jogged over to pick up her racquet.

"You almost knocked Tom out!" Daniel, his partner, complained for him. Tom nodded his head and handed the racquet to Daphne.

"I'm sorry," Daphne apologized. "I don't know how to hit the shuttle."

"I'll show you."

She jumped and turned around to see Mr. Firay, a grin on his face. Daphne guessed he had witnessed her attempt at Tom's murder. He followed Daphne back to the court. Ariana's face brightened immediately.

She felt very self-conscious as Mr. Firay took her hand and repositioned the racquet.

"Swing your arm like this," he instructed, slowly bringing Daphne's arm up. "Don't make quick short strikes, make long ones."

"That doesn't exactly help me hit the shuttle," she muttered, copying the movement of her arm again.

"Just keep your eye on the shuttle and swing. Don't worry about hitting or missing."

Daphne nodded and he stepped away. Out of the corner of her eyes, Daphne saw Wendell glaring at Mr. Firay. She ignored it. Daphne tossed the shuttle in the air and copied the movement Mr. Firay had shown her with her arm, keeping her eye on the shuttle.

It struck.

Ariana and Josh started clapping excitedly. It didn't make it across the net, but Daphne still had hit it, She couldn't help a grin spread across her face. She turned to Mr. Firay to thank him, but girls surrounded him again.

"Teach me how to hit too!" one of the more good-looking girls, Ali, requested.

"You were doing it just fine five seconds ago," Mr. Firay told her. Ariana snorted behind her hand.

"But I'm not sure if I'm doing it right!"

"Me either!" another girl said.

Daphne scowled and picked up the shuttle again. "Stupid girls," she muttered.

She swung the racquet hard, keeping her eye on the shuttle. It landed again and flew across the gym. Ariana went after it and hit it back to Daphne. She slammed it again, letting out her frustration.

"You got better quick," Josh commented, receiving one of her hits, "You're not letting Wendell get a hit at it at all!"

"I've got this one!" Wendell called, lunging for the shuttle.

He hit it straight up and Daphne ran over to rebound it. Wendell moved his leg at the last possible second; tripping Daphne and making her fall straight down onto her face. She landed on the gym floor with a loud smack and her racquet slid a few feet away. Her wrist panged painfully.

"Shit, are you okay?" Wendell asked, hovering over her. He didn't notice that he had cursed until Daphne gave him the stink eye.

"I'm fine," she responded, putting her hands under her body to push herself up.

A stabbing pain went through her wrist and she quickly removed it from under herself from falling down again. Wendell laughed.

"What are you doing?"

"I think I hurt my wrist," Daphne muttered, pushing herself back up with her other hand.

"You should probably go to the nurse," Ariana suggested, suddenly next to her.

"Daphne, are you okay?" a new voice asked, sounding slightly amused and slightly worried.

"I'm fine, Mr. Firay. I just hurt my wrist."

Mr. Firay took her injured hand and gently touched it. His touch sent a tingling feeling through her arm and Daphne wanted to rip it away, but she kept herself under control. He frowned.

"It might be sprained, so why don't you go to the nurse?"

"Okay," she responded. "I'll go now."

"But Daphne, can you stop by my room before you go home? I need to...talk to you about something," Mr. Firay continued, a hint of a smile on his face.

Ariana caught eye contact with Daphne and wagged her eyebrows. Daphne rolled her eyes at her. But part of her was excited.

"Sure. I'll see you later then," Daphne told him, trying to keep her face straight, "I'm going to go to the nurse now then..."

"See ya."

"Mr. Firay! I think I got it! Watch me!" a girl cried from the other side of the room.

"Sure," Mr. Firay responded.

He did a mini eye roll at Daphne before turning around and jogging over to the girl. Daphne smiled slightly to herself as she turned and headed back to the changing room.

**A/N. **Not much to say except that I went to the winter dance at my school on Friday and my feet hurt from dancing. Tomorrow I have P.E. and most likely, we're going to have to run the mile (NINE FRIGGIN LAPS AROUND THE FIELD IN 12 MINUTES OR LESS!). I'm dead, aren't I? Asides from those terrible news, I have one more. (LOL) You know how much I LOVE Puck and MS? Well, I absolutely can't stand the guys at my school. (Aside from some...?) And I had to DANCE WITH THEM.

To say the least, it was embarrassing. Everyone was wolf-whistling at me when I danced with this guy named Mark (I only danced with two, him and this guy named Elliot, thank gawd) and I tried to tell them to shut up. I think someone took a picture of us dancing and it's on FB...o.O I'm seriously dead.

Anyways, I had a review asking me if 'Dee' was really my last name. _No. _Lol, that's be cool, but no. Something happened to my Facebook a few months ago, so I changed my last name from what it was to 'Dee' as like, a code name. ? But anyways, if you want to friend me, do so! But send me a message first saying that you're from FF first, please! :D

Okay, I'm done for today! Expect wayward updates once school (for me) finishes Friday because I'm -most likely- going to update every **four days**. Yep. No longer will it be every week, but four days. Give thanks to Jesus and Father Christmas for break. But especially Jesus. He's awesome (no offense, Santa).

Ta ta for now!

~Lara


	15. Chapter 15:

**A/N.** *inhales and exhales exaggeratedly* _It's Christmas Vacation! _*streamers come out of nowhere* I'm happy.

**And you must be too because that means my every-other-four-days updates are coming at _you_!**

Yes, I said I'm going to update every other four days. If not, I'll still try to keep on schedule. You have a problem with that? Asides from my one-shots of course. :3 So, including my two one-shots for this season, I'll be uploading about...oh, I don't know 8 or so times? Maybe less. Depending on when I start writing the chapters and how much free time I have, but you know... The times of updates are listed in the bottom A/N.

Those are not the only good news, but...

I GOT A REAL FIRST FLAME! :O If any of you remember Curlscat's Birth of A Pixie, you should also remember the 'Flaming Reviewer' (FR) person. ^^ Oh my gosh! This is so awesome! Oh, I must be insane for being happy. Well, it's just that Curlscat's an awesome writer, and that person reviewed, so that must make me worthy enough to get a review from this oh-so-polite person. :) So thanks, FR! If you had told me that two years ago, I'd still be laughing. :) But really? Masturbating? I never knew you were so sexual...Umm...o.O I hope you know some of my audience is a bit young...

Oh, and Curlscat (yep, I'm bringing you in this) mentioned that how I'm writing this Point of View (3rd POV) should be in 1st POV because she's always thrown off when I write 'Daphne' instead of 'I'. So, this is a sample chapter kind of thing. This will be written all in Daphne's POV (1st POV) and I'd like to see what you all think! Does it fit better than 3rd person?

For the record, if Daphne's talking in 1st POV, then I'm not going to be putting her thoughts in italics.

Okay, I'm done rambling. Enjoy your chapter.

**Chapter 15: Misunderstandings**

"I'm coming in," I said as I opened the door to Mr. Firay's classroom.

No reply came and I looked towards his desk. He wasn't there. I frowned in confusion. Hadn't he told me he needed to talk to me?

I heard laughter from the supply room, so I headed over to it. Just as I was about to enter, a girl appeared in front of me. Her shocked expression must've mimicked mine.

"Oh, excuse me," she said, blinking and then walking past me.

I turned around and watched her exit the room. What was she doing in Mr. Firay's supply closet? I faced the supply room again and walked into it. Mr. Firay was standing by the refrigerator, fixing his tie.

It felt like a brick had dropped into my gut.

He noticed me and grinned, but his grin quickly went away. "What's wrong?"

"What were you doing?" I demanded, sounding more accusing than I had meant to.

"What do you mean? Oh," he said, dropping his tie. "You mean what I was doing with Susan?"

I nodded, narrowing my eyes slightly.

Mr. Firay laughed. "What do you think we were doing?"

Why was he laughing? Wasn't it obvious? They were both in the supply room, and he was fixing his shirt. When I didn't reply, Mr. Firay shook his head and sighed.

"We weren't doing anything bad, Daphne," he informed me. "I was helping her with her science project."

He pointed to a tray on the counter.

"Why are you fixing your shirt then?"

"Because it was messed up?" he responded, raising an eyebrow.

I blushed instantly. What was I thinking? This was school. Mr. Firay wouldn't be making out or anything with students in the school. I was just letting my jealousy get the best of me again.

I looked at the floor and clenched my hands. It was Mr. Firay's fault for making me feel this way. If he treated me like he treated every other student, I wouldn't have these unchecked emotions.

I felt something hard on my shoulder and I jumped.

"Were you jealous?" Mr. Firay asked, his jaw moving on my shoulder when he talked.

"No," I lied, turning my head away.

He chuckled and lifted his head off my shoulder. "You're cute, Daphne."

My face grew hotter and I frowned at him. "Mr. Firay, don't say stuff like that."

"Why not?" he responded, going back over to the fridge.

"We're in school. You're a teacher. I'm a student."

Mr. Firay turned around and looked at me with a sad expression. "I thought we had something special?"

I narrowed my eyes. This is what I didn't like about Mr. Firay. When he compliments me, I don't know whether he's joking or not, because he always says something jokingly afterwards.

I sighed. "What do you want?"

"Oh yeah," Mr. Firay said, going over to the closet.

He began to shuffle through some stuff and finally pulled out a small paper bag. He tossed it to me. "You left your shirt at my house."

I grabbed the bag and looked inside. Sure enough, my shirt was in there. It was folded and cleaned too. "Um, thanks."

"No problem."

"Okay, well, I've got to go home now," I told him, a bit reluctantly.

"Already?"

My heart skipped a beat, as cliché as it sounds. Did that mean he didn't want me to go home either? I cursed myself silently. Why today of all days did Wendell want to go to dinner?

I sighed. "Yeah. I'm going to dinner with Wendell in a little while."

"Oh," Mr. Firay responded simply. "I didn't know you two were dating."

"What?" I cried, making Mr. Firay jump. "We aren't dating!"

Mr. Firay turned to look at me, a confused expression on his face. "You're not?"

"We're eating out as friends."

He suddenly started laughing. "Poor Wendell."

"What? Why?"

Mr. Firay shook his head. "You really are cute, Daphne. Cute, but dense."

"Well you're cute, but a jerk!" I responded, freezing when I realized what I said.

He smirked. "I'm cute, huh?"

I blushed. "Never mind. I meant you're really ugly!"

"Sure you did," he said with a laugh.

"I did! Now goodbye!"

"Be careful!" he called after me, still laughing.

I sped out of the room, my face burning. I couldn't believe I had just said that. It was so embarrassing! Did he think that I had feelings for him now? Did he have feelings for me?

I shook my head violently. I was getting ahead of myself. And to think this was a grand moment for biting my palm! I needed to get home and get ready to go to dinner with Wendell.

The walk home was slow. When I finally made it to the apartment, I wasn't in the best of moods. I was so used to having Mr. Firay drive me home that I wasn't used to walking long distances. I wished I had my totally awesomesauce magic carpet...

The door was locked so I reached for the spare key. This time it was where it should have been, and I opened the door and went in, sticking the key in my pocket.

The phone started ringing and I smiled. Perfect timing.

I went into the kitchen and quickly grabbed the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's Wendell."

"Hi," I responded, heading towards my room. "What's up?"

"Do you care if we eat a late dinner? We can't get in until eight."

"That's fine with me," I responded, narrowing my eyes slightly. Where was Wendell planning on taking me? Was it somewhere fancy? I hoped it wasn't. That would cost a lot...

"Okay, so I'll pick you up at like seven thirty."

"You're driving?" I asked skeptically. "I'm not so sure I want to go now."

He laughed. "Hey! I'm good a good driver!"

I snorted, rolling my eyes. "That's why Red told me you've been in two car crashes over the past six months?"

"I just have bad luck," Wendell responded, amusement in his voice.

"Whatever; see you then," I told him. "I'll be writing my will in the meantime."

"You're such a bummer, Daphne," he responded with a sigh.

"I'm joking," I said with a laugh.

He laughed too. "I know."

"Bye."

"See you later."

I hit the OFF button on the phone and threw it onto my bed. I frowned. Now I didn't have anything to do. I could have stayed with Mr. Firay at school. What a waste...

The television was calling for my attention, so I went into the living room and turned it on. It was on the music video channel. I shrugged and kept it there. I plopped onto the couch and settled into a more comfortable position.

I woke up with a start. My cheek was wet and I made a grossed out face and wiped the drool away. I checked the clock to see what time it was. Two and a half hours had passed; it was now 4:30. Time for a shower!

I sighed and went back to my room and to my dresser. The top drawer was part way open so I shut it before opening the one underneath it. Hoping we didn't have to dress fancy, I grabbed a pair of light wash jeans and also took a blue plaid shirt.

I went into the bathroom and took a quick shower before changing into my new clothes. I wrapped a towel around my head before going back to my room. I picked up my cell phone and opened it to see if anyone had texted me. To my surprise, there were ten missed calls from a number I didn't recognize. I jumped when my phone suddenly went off. It was the same unknown number that had called before.

I hesitated a moment before answering it. "Hel-"

"Why haven't you been answering your phone?" an irritated voice demanded.

I blinked in shock. Who was this guy? "Um, sir? I think you have the wrong number-"

"Daphne, its Matt or whatever."

Matt? Oh! "Mustardseed? I mean, Mr. Firay?"

"Yeah, he responded, "But I told you to call me Matt."

"Sorry," I apologized. "But how did you get my number?"

"I asked Ariana for it," he told me.

I sighed. It had to be her, didn't it? I was in for some questioning now. "Why did you need my phone number?"

"I wanted to know where you were going for dinner. Is it downtown?"

"I don't know," I responded. "Why?"

"Because that's our territory."

"I don't own any territory?" I asked, confused.

Mr. Firay laughed, but turned serious again. "Gang territory."

"...Oh."

"Yeah."

I licked my lips. "What does that have to do with me?"

"It will be dangerous for you down there," he told me.

"Why? I didn't even do anything!"

Mr. Firay sighed. "I know you didn't. I got you caught up in this. But you still are involved, Daphne. Whether you want to be involved or not isn't your decision."

"So I can't even go downtown without worrying about being attacked or whatever they want to do?" I demanded, my eyes wide.

"During the day time, you don't really have to worry, since there are people around. I'm more worried about nights...like tonight."

"Well we are only going to eat," I told him.

"But still..."

I smiled slightly. "Are you worried about me, Mr. Firay?"

"Yeah, I am."

I blinked in shock. I wasn't expecting a truthful remark, let alone a serious one. "Oh, um, thank you."

Mr. Firay sighed. "Just promise me you will have your phone at all times. And stay with Wendell."

"Promise," I told him. "You don't really think something will happen, do you?"

Mr. Firay laughed. "No. But just in case."

"Okay."

"And make sure you actually answer your phone."

Now it was my turn to laugh. "Okay."

"Talk to you later then."

"Bye, Mr. Firay."

"Daphne?"

"Yeah?"

"Have fun on your date."

"It's not-" I started but I heard a click and knew he hung up.

I scowled, tossing the phone onto the bed. Stupid Mr. Firay.

**A/N.** Sorry it's short. To make up for that, you guys get another chapter tomorrow (and besides, I have to on schedule)!

_OKAY! Updating Schedule:_

_1. Sunday, Dec. 18: FTFT-15 (I missed the date. :3)_

_2. Wednesday, Dec. 21: FTFT-16 (Tomorrow!)_

_3. Saturday, Dec. 24: FTFT-17_

_4. *Sunday, Dec. 25: Oneshot(s) (I have two, but I'm not sure if I'll finish both in time, so maybe one will be posted on this Sunday)_

_5. Tuesday, Dec. 27: FTFT-18_

_6. Friday, Dec. 30: FTFT-19_

_(((7. *Sunday, Jan. 1: (If not posted on the 25th) Oneshot)))_

_8. Monday, Jan. 2: FTFT-20_

_*These aren't part of the 'updated-every-four-days' thing. The updates will still go with the flow, and the one-shots are just like interjected, I guess. :3 Oh, and if I don't post one of the oneshots in time, then it'll be posted most likely on the 1st of Jan._

Was that confusing? I'm available for any questions. :D

Oh, I found a new anime I like, so you can read about it below if you want:

_If you're an Anime Watcher, and looking for a new one to watch, or feel like chatting me up, watch/talk to me about Shugo Chara! O.O I've never seen such an Awesome Anime. I mean, I thought Maid Sama! was good. This is freakin' addicting. I started watching them Wednesday and I've already finished the 1st season (I finished it Sunday; all 51 episodes!). Almost done with the second. But I'm taking a day break from it because if I watch too much, it'll be over too soon. (*bawls*) Then, after that, I'm going to watch the Shugo Chara! Party episodes and all the other ones that I might've missed. Then I'm going to go on to the manga. Oh yeah. :D_

_If you're someone who wants to talk to me about it, here's a topic: Which pairing is awesomer? Amuto or Tadamu? Personally, I love Tadamu right now because Tadase is just so sweet and nice! Gosh, and he's adorable (even in a skirt; spoiler alert!). :3 But Ikuto's mysterious and funny. Instead of calling him hot (which he is), I'm just going to say he's someone that I really enjoy looking at, lol...oh, I sound so weird. I love both of them. ERGH! I can't decide who I love more!_

So that was my anime rant for today!_I would like some more anime suggestions, so if you have one you're sure I may like, tell me about it in a review. :D_

So anyways, be ready for many updates! Tomorrow I hopefully update!

~Lara


	16. Chapter 16:

A/N. My friend told me to call this 'The Chapter That Clears Up What People Misunderstood'. So...yeah. Hopefully you like the chapter. :)

Chapter 16: Profession of Affection

The doorbell rang and I immediately jumped up from my computer chair. I checked my reflection once in the mirror before hurrying downstairs. I held my breath for a moment before opening the door; hopefully Wendell was dressed casually too.

Wendell knocked again, so I opened the door. He was dressed in casual clothes as well. I sighed in relief.

"You ready?" he asked with a grin.

"Yep," I responded, stepping out an shutting the door behind me.

Together we made our way down to the car. I raised an eyebrow at the Subaru Outback. Wendell laughed.

"My dad thought we should get a 'normal looking car' when we got here."

"Well, you need a different, 'normal looking car'," I told him getting in the passenger's side.

Wendell slid into the driver's seat and shrugged. "I think it's fine."

He started the engine and quickly pulled out of my driveway, barely checking to see if anyone was coming. I nervously looked out the window.

From what Red had told me, driving with Wendell wasn't one of her favorite things to do. She said he was a very reckless driver. I silently agreed as Wendell turned on the radio and flipped through the stations, barely paying attention to the road.

"The road, Wendell," I snapped, batting his hand away from the radio. "_Pay attention to the road!_"

He laughed. "Chill, I can drive fine."

I rolled my eyes. "Right. Where are we going anyways?"

"A place downtown," he responded vaguely.

I immediately thought of Mr. Firay's warning. It felt as if he was foreshadowing something. I quickly shook the thought from my mind. It wasn't like anything could happen inside the restaurant.

When we arrived, I relaxed completely. It was brightly lit and the parking lot was right next to the building. We even got the parking place closest to the building.

Wendell shut off the car and quickly got out. I unbuckled myself and opened the door. There was a thump and a grunt.

I looked out the window and noticed Wendell standing there, rubbing his side.

"What are you doing? I asked, waiting for him to move back a few steps before opened my door fully.

"I was going to opened the door for you," he told me.

I laughed. "There's no need. I can do it myself."

Wendell frowned at me. I returned his look.

"You don't..."

"Don't what?" I asked.

"Oh, never mind," he said with a sigh. "I should've known."

"Should have known what?" I demanded, frowning deeper.

Wendell put his arm around my shoulder. "Forget about it."

"I wanna know now."

"Too bad."

"You mean olive."

"Calling me names won't make me tell you."

I fake growled at him. Wendell poked me in the side.

"What are you? A tiger?"

I ignored him and he continued poking me.

"Stop poking me, Mr. Fir-" I cut myself off when I realized what I said.

I couldn't believe I had just said Mr. Firay's name! And in front of Wendell! He probably had Ariana's idea in his head too.

Wendell raised his eyebrows. "Mr. Firay?"

I blushed. "Sorry, I meant Wendell."

His mouth turned down slightly and he sighed again. "I knew it."

"Knew what?"

"Sorry, talking to myself," Wendell said with a wink.

"Wendell!"

He laughed and led me to the entrance of the diner. It seemed like a pretty casual place. I didn't know what Mr. Firay was thinking when he said this was a date. It was two friends going out to dinner together.

"Name?" a young man dressed in a suit asked almost as soon as we entered. A lady eyed our attire as we walked in, making me feel self-conscious.

"Wendell and Daphne," Wendell told the man.

The woman snickered behind her hand. "_Wendell._"

The man in the suit glared at her, then looked down at a piece of paper. After a moment, he nodded. "Follow me."

"You had to make reservations at a place like this?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

"Believe it or not, this place is really popular."

I took in the amount of people in the diner. Every booth and tale was filled. Wendell noticed me looking around and smirked.

"Told you."

"Shut up."

The waiter stopped at our table as Wendell and I took our seats, opposite of each other.

"Can I start you off with something to drink?"

"Coke," Wendell and I responded at the same time.

"Jinks! You own me a coke!" I said quickly.

"Sure. But you pay for dinner."

I frowned. "That's not fair!"

Wendell shrugged. "For what you did, I think it's fair."

"What did I do?" I asked.

Wendell sighed, shaking his head. "Never mind."

I glared at him. "What's up with all the 'never minds', Wendell?"

He sighed again. "Do you think this is a date?"

I shook my head quickly. "Not at all."

Wendell smirked. My mouth opened a little when I realized what he was trying to imply.

"Wait. Did you mean for this to be a date?"

He smirked wider. "Maybe."

"Oh," I responded, staring at him. "Crap. Wendell, I'm sorry-"

He held up his hand. "Save it. I figured you thought we were just going out as friends. I was just trying to be a jerk to let you know what I thought. But I got it now."

"I feel bad though," I responded. "I didn't know...you liked me like that."

Wendell laughed. "Wait a second. Don't think I like you like _that_."

I looked at him curiously. "What?"

He shrugged. "I thought I might. That's why I took you out to dinner."

I raised an eyebrow. "But you don't...?"

He snorted. "Even if I found out I did, it wouldn't matter."

"Why?"

"Your stupid lover boy...well, man."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "I don't have a lover?"

Wendell rolled his eyes. "Oh come on. I've only been here for a few days and I can see what's going on. Don't you dare think that I don't know."

"Don't know what?"

"You and that teacher."

"Mr. Firay? Whoa, no!" I responded, raising my hands. "There's nothing going on between us!"

Wendell rolled his eyes again. "Maybe not. But it's obvious you like him."

"I don't!" I denied.

"You stare at him all the time in class."

I felt my face heat up and I looked down. "I do not."

Wendell shook his head. "Out of all the people you could like, it had to be a teacher, huh? And not even a good teacher. There's something strange about that guy. Or dangerous. And I don't like how he looks at you either."

I snapped my head up to look at Wendell. How good of an intuition could one person have? Not only did he get it spot on that I liked Mr. Firay, but he also even thought something was dangerous about him? That was crazy. That was...

Wait, what did Wendell say?

"What do you mean by how he looks at me?" I questioned, my heartbeat increasing slightly.

Wendell scowled. "I don't know how to describe it. Sometimes it's like he's worried...sometimes it's like a mother looking at her child. And sometimes it's like how you look at him."

I stared at Wendell, my eyes wide. He returned my stare, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"There's something up with you two. It may not be romantically, but there's something," he accused.

I forced out a laugh. "No, there's nothing going on between us."

"Daphne," Wendell stated seriously, "do you really plan on lying to your best friend?"

My face fell at once. He was right. I didn't want to lie, but it wasn't like I could exactly tell him either.

"Even after you thought this wasn't a date, when I thought it was?" he added, heaving a loud huff of air. "I see how it is."

I couldn't help a smirk spread onto my face. "I said I was sorry about that."

Wendell rolled his eyes. "You're lucky I'm not head over heels for you. 'Cause then this would suck completely."

"Do you like me or not?" I demanded, crossing my arms. "How come you can't give me a yes or no answer?"

"Because, like I said, it doesn't mater if I do or not."

"How would you know?"

"Would you go out with me if I said I did?" Wendell asked.

I hesitated, biting my lip. "Um..."

"There you go."

"But-"

Wendell held up his hand. "I know there isn't a way for you to like me right now. So that's why I'm going to stop myself from liking you before I can really start to."

"How?"

"You tell me you're in love with him."

I blushed again. "I'm not in love-"

Wendell raised his eyebrow. "I'm not stupid, Daphne. Now say it. Otherwise I'm going to fall completely in love with you and ruin all your chances with any boy until you love me back."

I scowled at him. "Fine."

He smirked. "I'm waiting."

I took a deep breath. I didn't want to admit this. Not even to myself. But I didn't want to lead Wendell on. He was my best friend. And I didn't want to lose him.

"I'm..." I stopped, looking down at my lap.

"Say it. Look at me."

I looked up at Wendell and stared him straight in the eye. "I'm in love with Mattheis Firay."

A/N. Nyeh. I don't like the last sentence that much. I was debating whether to write 'Mustardseed', or 'Matt', so I'm not 100% percent happy, but I guess it'll do until I find a better ending.

Be happy that I love all of you so much. I was about to give up writing this chapter and posting it today until I remembered all your happy feedback. :D So yeah...I'm going to take a nap to rest my fingers. Peace.

~Lara

(IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT, WANT TO SEE IT, OR JUST DANG CURIOUS, THE UPDATES SCHEDULE IS ON CH. 15; the PREVIOUS CHAPTER)


	17. Chapter 17:

**A/N. **You guys must be pretty happy. I can see from your reviews! Shocked that I'm updating according to schedule? Me too. :3 Anyways, read read read and review review review and I'll write write write and update update update. :D

Now, to reply to the anonymous reviewers...

To Cat: I didn't mean for Wendell to be a jerk. He's not. :3 He just wanted to put it out there and to imply to Daphne that it was a date. Also 'Wendell' really isn't such a sucky name. I know a guy named Dick House. I'm serious. So...that's a sucky name. Oh, gosh, that sounds perverted (that's what she said). Umm, sorry. :33333 One more thing, if I had put a love triangle, Wendell's heart would've been crushed anyways, and I don't want to make him too sad. He's going to be a lonely character for most of the story, but most likely end up with Bella or Red. :3 But thanks for the review!

To squirrel101: Sorry it seemed short. This chapter will make up for it, hopefully. :D To answer your question...

His last name isn't Goodfellow because _a)_ there are some Shakespeare freaks (like Daniel from chapter...3? 3) who could possibly know the last name and _b)_ that would be too easy for Daphne to figure out who he was.

I picked Mattheis because it sounds...what's the word...'old school'? Like 19th century and stuff? And Michael, Mark, and just calling his plain Mustardseed didn't seem to fit him. Mattheis sounded cool to me. :D I mean, Puck get's Robin, so Mustardseed should be able to have a cool name, too, you know? :)

So, as always, enjoy your chapter (and have a Merry Christmas Eve)!

**Chapter 17: The Subaru Outback Mishap**

"You know it's illegal...right?"

I looked up from my dinner at Wendell, who was frowning at me. I raised an eyebrow.

"Do I look stupid?"

Wendell smirked. "Do you really want me to answer that?"

I rolled my eyes and shook my head. "I know it's illegal, Wendell. Just because I like-"

"Love."

"-Like," I repeated forcefully, "him, that doesn't me I'll be romantically involved with him."

"You've already admitted you love him!"

"It's something I will never repeat again, Wendell," I told him, looking back down at my food and picking up a piece of steak and putting it in my mouth.

"Even when you confess?" he responded, sounding confused.

I nearly choked on the steak. I swallowed and looked at Wendell, my eyes wide. "I'm not going to confess to him!"

Wendell looked at me, bewildered. "Why?"

"Because," I started, chewing on my lip.

"Because why?"

"It's illegal, Wendell," I told him, looking at my lap. "Not only is it illegal, but people also think it's disgusting. Even just talking about it, people get these disgusted looks on their faces."

"That's why? You won't confess because people will think you are disgusting?"

I looked back up at Wendell, surprised by his angry tone. He stared at me, his mouth twisted into a small scowl.

"It's not only that," I responded, casting my eyes down again. "He could lost his job. And I'd be in trouble too."

He scoffed. "So what?"

I stared at Wendell in surprise. Wasn't he the one who said in the beginning that it was creepy for a student to like a teacher?

"If you really love someone, Daphne, you wouldn't care about any of those things," he informed me, his mouth pressed into a firm, straight line. "There's nothing wrong with two people being in love! In a year, you won't even be a student anymore. And there isn't even that big of an age difference between the two of you."

My mouth was slightly open now. Wendell clicked his tongue impatiently.

"Why do you care?" I managed to ask, still in slight shock by his outburst.

"Because, Daphne," Wendell started with a sigh. "You're my best friend. I care about you a lot, in a friend way," he added quickly.

I laughed. "Yeah, we've been over that."

"Anyways, I want you to be happy. And if being with that teacher is what will make you happy, I'm going to support it. Even if I don't like it. And if you say you can't be with him, I'm going to force you to be with him because I know that's what you want. I want you happy, Daphne."

I suddenly felt like crying. This was almost as bad as Briar's death, but in the positive sense. My eyes were beginning to water, so I blinked rapidly to keep any tears from spilling over. I swallowed a lump in my throat too.

Wendell was too sweet. He may have sounded kind of like a jerk saying he would force me, but he really wasn't. He cared about me far too much more than I deserved from him. I wasn't nearly as kind to him.

All the times he was trying to tell me that he might've had feelings for me, I had been oblivious. And when he came with Red to check up on me when he was worried I had kind of blown him off. And now, taking me on a date when I thought of it as friend's going out.

I was the hugest olivehole ever.

"Whoa. Daphne, what's wrong?" Wendell asked, leaning forward. "Why are you crying?"

I shook my head. "I'm not..."

How could Wendell have figured out so many of my fears about liking Mr. Firay so quickly? I hadn't even mentioned anything about Mr. Firay at all, and yet he managed to figure out my deepest secret. Well, besides being a descendant of the Brothers Grimm. He already knew that.

Even after all that I had done to him...he still wanted to help me.

I rubbed my eyes and then reached my hand across the table, grabbing Wendell's. I squeezed it and he returned the gesture,

I swallowed the lump in my throat again and looked up at Wendell. "Thank you, Wendell."

"You're welcome," he responded, a warm smile on his face.

"You're the best friend anyone could ever have," I told him, giving him a watery smile. "And I'm sorry for ignoring your feelings, and kind of blowing you off when you called because you were worried. And-"

Wendell laughed, cutting me off. "Daphne, we're best friends. Not lovers. You're making me feel like we're a couple that's making up after a huge fight."

I chuckled, pulling my hand away. "I guess you're right."

Wendell nodded. "And since we're speaking of couples again, good luck with that teacher."

"He has a name, you know," I responded, frowning slightly.

"I don't like him taking you away from me, so I won't call him by his name," Wendell responded, rolling his eyes.

"Taking you from me?" I echoed.

"You know. If you two start dating or something, I'm sure you won't have time for poor, old Wendell."

I shook my head frantically. "I'll always make time for you! And Ariana and Red!"

"You promise?"

"Promise!"

Wendell laughed. "Good. And while you're at it, you can help me with something."

"Anything," I told him.

"You have to help me find a girlfriend," he said with a wink. It was weird, I never imagined, chubby, thick headed Wendell Piper with no experience with girls to turn into a charming best friend who was asking for girlfriend help. He might seem jerk-ish now, but that's probably because he was growing up...

I grinned. "Sounds good."

Wendell returned the grin. I suddenly felt at ease. As if all my worries about liking Mr. Firay went away.

I could actually say I love him and nothing in my mind made me want to deny it. I could say it!

"I love Mr. Firay," I said aloud.

Wendell raised an eyebrow. "I know..."

"I love him!" I repeated, smiling. "I actually love him. Out of all people!"

Wendell pursed his lips "Are you okay?"

I laughed and nodded. "I'm fine! After talking to you, it feels like a weight has been lifted off me. It feels Pucktastic."

"Hmm, maybe I should become a counselor then..."

I froze, staring at Wendell. Him? A counselor? I could imagine the poor person he was counseling now. Wendell would ask what was wrong, and the person would reply about something in their life that was bad, and he would go, "Oh...Sucks to be you."

I snickered. It was so him. Well, present him. His past person would probably be crying along with the person he was counseling. Wendell raised an eyebrow.

"I hope you aren't imagining me as a counselor right now," he said in a slightly offended voice.

"Nah," I lied, smiling again.

We finished our dinners and had a quick dessert. The waiter brought the check and, due to Wendell's pestering, I ended up paying for the dinner. He paid for the drinks.

"I thought this was supposed to be a date," I muttered as we exited the diner.

"It was supposed to be, but you didn't think that at first, so it turned into a regular dinner among friends," Wendell responded.

"I would've preferred it to be a date if I knew I would have to pay for dinner if it wasn't," I told him.

Wendell laughed. "Sucks for you."

We rounded the corner to where the car was parked. Wendell suddenly stopped and I ran into his back. I rubbed my nose and looked around him to see what the problem was.

"Wendell...where's the car?"

He looked at me, shock on his face. "We parked here, didn't we?"

I nodded. "Yeah, but where's the car?"

"I don't know! Holy shit. Did it get stolen?" Wendell asked, his voice panicky. "Crap, my mom is going to kill me!"

"How could it have been stolen? There are tons of people around!" I reasoned rationally. "Someone would've noticed. You have the keys, right?"

"Yeah, I-"

"Hey!" a loud, disgruntled voice, shouted from behind us.

I jumped, twisting around quickly to see who it was.

An old man in a black suit was walking towards us. Wendell stepped in front of me in a protective manner. I stared at him curiously.

"Yeah?" Wendell called to the man.

"Are you the owner of the Subaru Outback?"

Wendell nodded.

"Take a look at that sign behind you," the man ordered.

I turned to see the sign he was pointing to. In large, red letters were the words: "No parking. Violators will be towed."

I heard Wendell groan. I rolled my eyes. It was so like Wendell to park in a no parking spot.

"Lucky for you and your girl, the towing place is only down the block," the man told us, smirking slightly.

"Yeah," Wendell muttered. "Let's go get it then."

I sighed, and started following behind Wendell. We left the parking lot of the diner and got onto the brightly lit street.

"Smart move," I commented, pulling my shirt tighter around me.

"Oh be quiet," he responded, rolling his eyes. "You didn't see it either, smart ass."

"Hey, no cursing!" I scowled at him, and slapped his arm. "And I wasn't even the one driving."

"Only adds to my point," Wendell said with a smirk.

I sighed, letting the subject drop. We were close enough to the towing station. If it had been a few miles, I would've been angry. I might've unleashed some Bad Apples Attack on Wendell. But it was a nice night for a walk anyways.

As we left the main street, it became considerably darker. Now the only light we had were the streetlights that were spread very far apart. There were patches of dark in between each set of lights. I moved close to Wendell, gripping the back of his shirt.

"What's the matter? Scared?" he asked in a joking tone. I knew he was just trying to lighten the mood but...

I scowled at him. "No."

"Sure."

We continued down the street in silence. I kept my eyes peeled. Mr. Firay's warning was back in my head again. I clutched Wendell's shirt tighter. We were almost at the station now.

A movement to my left caught my eye and I froze, staring at the place where I had seen the motion. Wendell stopped, looking over his shoulder at me curiously.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Did you see something move other there?" I whispered, pointing.

Wendell scrunched his face up and watched the area for a few moments before shrugging. "Nothing."

"You sure?"

"Paranoid much?" Wendell laughed. "Come on, let's go."

He grabbed the collar of my shirt and pulled me in front of him. He began to push me down the street in a forceful manner. I had to stay focused on my feet in order to not lose my balance.

When I looked up again I realized we were at the towing station. Relief swept through me. Mr. Firay was just being silly. No one was going to attack me in the middle of town.

Wendell and I entered the towing station. There were only three people in there. A man at the counter, who was on the phone, and two men in the corner, their backs to us as they read papers posted on the billboard.

"You can wait here," Wendell said, pointing to a chair by the door. "I'll get my car issue settled."

I nodded and took a seat at the chair as Wendell went to talk to the man at the counter. The man held up a finger, signaling Wendell to stay quiet while he was on the phone. After a few moments, he hung up the phone and began talking to Wendell.

My gaze wandered to the two men in the corner. They both looked pretty young, and buff. I smirked slightly. Was every guy buff these days? I glanced back at Wendell. Believe it or not, but he was average muscled, like Mr. Firay. But both men were still very strong.

Wendell turned to me with a frown. "Daphne!"

I was still focused on the two men and didn't realize he was calling me.

"Oh look, it's Mr. Firay!"

My head snapped in the direction of Wendell. He grinned at me and I felt myself blush.

"Do you have any money on you? I'm a few dollars short of-"

The rest of what he said, I didn't catch. I was too busy staring at the two men who had now turned around and were looking at me.

My mouth went dry as I saw one of them smirk. He said something to the other guy, and a flash of realization spread across his face. I quickly stood up, walking towards Wendell. "Here," I said, quickly pulling a ten out of my pocket and giving it to the man. "Keep the change."

"Alright, you're free to go then," the man at the counter said, taking the ten. "Your car is in the back of the lot, by the dumpster."

I grabbed Wendell's arm and began to quickly drag him out of the store. I felt like I was going to be sick. My heart was pumping furiously and my hands were sweaty and shaking. I pulled on Wendell with urgency, trying to make him go faster.

"What's the matter?" he asked, laughing slightly. "That guy wasn't that scary."

It wasn't the guy at the counter I was worried about. I looked over my shoulder and saw the other two guys exiting the building, and heading towards us.

I pulled out my phone, starting a new text message. I quickly tapped away at my phone, my hands shaking, making it hard to click on the right letters. When I finished, I closed my phone, sticking it in my pocket.

I looked over my shoulder again. The two men were still there.

The same two guys that Mr. Firay had beat up at the fair.

**A/N. **Dun dun dun...gosh, I didn't know if I would post this in time because it's Christmas Eve. Have a good one and a one-shot shall be posted up tomorrow! Thanks for the enjoyable reviews!

~Lara


	18. Chapter 18:

**A/N.** _Gomenasai gomenasai!_ I didn't update yesterday! So here's an update today. By the way, if there are any errors again- I'm sorry; I had to study for my Duke TIP test (GAH! I'M NOT EVEN IN HIGHSCHOOL! GAH!). It's taking a toll on my brain.

Besides that, I'd like to give a gigantic thanks to the readers and reviewers to Wishes from the Trickster King. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! Read it if you haven't, but be warned: SAPPINESS AND FLUFFINESS AWAIT YOU.

Now, here's your chapter! Let's see what's going to happen to Wendell and Daphne, shall we?

**Chapter 18: Jack and Dan**

The two thugs were a few hundred feet behind us. I figured if Wendell and I kept a brisk pace, we would be able to make it to the car before they caught up with us. And once we were in the car, we could lock the doors and I could call the cops. Or Mr. Firay.

But I still was extremely paranoid. I wanted to get to the car as quickly as possible.

"Hurry up, Wendell," I begged, out of breath. "Please."

"What's wrong?" he asked, serious now. "Daphne?"

I glanced at Wendell, who looked extremely worried. He glanced over his shoulder and a surprised look passed over his face. I followed his gaze and saw the two men now running towards us.

"Run!" I screamed, grabbing Wendell's hand and bolting down the aisle of cars.

Wendell stumbled after me, looking behind him. Eventually, he faced the front again, sprinting by my side.

"What's wrong? Who are they?"

"I'll explain later, we just need to get away as soon as possible-"

I stopped abruptly, making Wendell knock into me, sending me sprawling onto the ground. I landed hard and smacked my head against the hard dirt. I groaned, and pushed myself off the ground.

When I looked up, I came face-to-face with two more men, but these two were unfamiliar.

"Hey, let go of me!" I heard Wendell demand.

My head snapped towards him and I saw the two thugs from before holding onto his arms tightly.

"Let him go!" I demanded. "He doesn't have anything to do with this!"

"He knows Matt." A voice responded. I noticed the man who was holding Wendell, was the man I had punched in the face back in the woods at the fair. "That's enough reason."

A pair of rough hands on my shoulder yanked me from the ground and forced me to my feet. I broke out from under them and ran towards Wendell, only to be tackled down from behind.

I groaned in frustration when my head once again slammed down on the hard dirt. I really needed to think before I acted.

"You're a feisty one, huh," the one pinning me down commented. "I've heard a lot about you."

"Get off her!" I heard Wendell shout. "Who are you guys?"

"Shut up," one of the other men responded to him.

"No! You're hurting her!"

I heard the sound of a fist being slammed into a gut and someone groaned. My heart skipped a beat.

"I hope you think before you talk now," the same man who had spoke before said.

The man pinning me to the ground rolled off me and there was a pressure on my back and I winced, hearing the scuffing of dirt. When the man was finally standing up, he grabbed my hair and forced me to my feet.

"You take the girl and I'll take the other brat, Dan," the one holding me offered.

"Good idea, Jack."

So the person I had punched before was named Dan. Good to know.

"I think she owes me an apology anyways," Dan continued, gesturing Jack closer to him.

I was forced into Dan's arms and Wendell was shoved into Jack's. Before Dan had a good grasp on me, Wendell suddenly swung his fist, hitting Dan squarely in the face. With his other hand, Wendell quickly brought his fist into Jack's face. Jack fell to the ground and didn't move, unconscious.

I blinked in amazement. I didn't know Wendell could fight.

"Daphne! Behind you!" Wendell shouted, his eyes widening slightly in surprise.

I twisted my body around, only to see a fist coming straight at me. I gasped, twisting again to avoid it. Dan scowled at me, his arm outstretched. Before I knew what I was doing, I kicked him where the sun didn't shine.

He groaned and hunched over. Wendell immediately grabbed my wrist, squeezing it painfully. I gasped as Wendell pulled me away from Dan and Jack. I stumbled over my own feet, but managed to quickly gain my balance.

Wendell ran forward, and suddenly I was tugged backwards. I cried out from the pain of my wrist being yanked back while Wendell was still trying to pull it forward. Wendell paused and turned back with a scowl.

"Behind you!" I gasped, pointing at one with fiery red hair who suddenly appeared behind Wendell. Peter Pan!

Wendell let go of my wrist, and twisting on his heel, brought his fist flying into the other man's face. I watched in amazement, until I realized the other man from the fair still had a grip on me.

I felt him pull on my hair and I twisted my head, biting his arm. He cried out in shock and ripped his arm away from my face, releasing my hair. I noticed a pile of tires behind the man, so I shoved him in the chest will all the force I could muster. Luckily, it was enough to make him take a few steps back, and he toppled over the tire.

I felt Wendell's hand at my wrist again.

"Run!"

Together we booked down the aisle of cars again. I could see Wendell's car now. It was only about twenty more cars down. And I didn't hear any footsteps behind us. We could make it!

We were ten cars away when suddenly a bat came swinging out of nowhere. I watched in horror as it made contact with Wendell's head. I screamed as he crumpled to the ground instantly.

"Wendell!" I shrieked, dropping to my knees beside him.

He didn't reply. I grabbed his arm and lifted it up. When I let go, it fell to the ground limply.

Tears sprung into my eyes. "Wendell! Wake up!"

"He's out cold, girly."

I looked up and saw Dan hovering over me, a smirk on his face. A baseball bat was resting across his shoulders. I glared at him angrily.

"What did you do?" I cried, clenching my fists.

"Just making sure there were no distractions," he told me. "That guy was in the way."

"He's my best friend!" I shouted, now pushing myself to my feet. "I'm going to kill you, you stupid olive!"

Dan laughed. "Okay."

He suddenly reached out and grabbed the front of my shirt, pulling me closer to him. I cringed at the proximity of us. I could smell his deodorant and cologne. He lowered his head down.

"I believe I still owe you from last time..."

I was about to ask him what he was talking about when his fist struck the side of my head. I stumbled backwards from the force. I raised a hand to my cheek, which throbbed painfully. Shock was written all over my face.

He had just hit a girl! Had this guy no sense of manners? Who hit girls? Before I could answer my own questions, I was struck again, in the same spot.

I cried out, stumbling backwards, hitting a car and falling onto the hood. Dan appeared before me. He rested his hand on my stomach, making sure I couldn't move.

"How does it feel to be punched?"

"I punched you once," I responded, shoving his hand off my stomach. "That's not fair."

Dan narrowed his eyes. "You don't realize you are dealing with a gang here, do you? There's nothing 'fair' about this. But you also kicked me..."

"Ugh."

Both Dan's and my own attention snapped to Wendell, who was pushing himself up into a sitting position. Relief washed through me. He was okay!

"Do I have to bash him over the head again?" Dan groaned, turning around.

I seized the opportunity to take advantage of him. I grabbed the baseball bat from his shoulders and easily slid it out of his grasp. He turned in surprise and without any hesitation, I struck him in the head.

He tottered on his feet for a second, but didn't pass out. I stared in horror as he scowled at me.

What had I just done? I changed my gaze of horror from him to the bat. Had I really just hit him with a bat in the head?"

"You," the man growled.

It was either fight. Or be harmed.

I swung the bat back for a second hit but he quickly grabbed my forearm, twisting it painfully.

I cried out, my fingers straightening from the pain. The bat fell to the ground.

"You just keep digging yourself a deeper grave, don't you?" Dan growled, still twisting my wrist.

"Stop," I begged, trying to twist my body with my wrist so it wouldn't snap. "Oh my God, please, stop!"

Dan stopped, dropping my wrist. I breathed a sigh of relief until I realized he had picked up the baseball bat. He raised it high above his head. I froze, staring at him with my mouth wide open. He wouldn't...would he?

My question was answered when he suddenly swung the bat down. I raised my arms to cover my head. There was the sickening sound of wood hitting bone, but no pain.

My eyes shot open to see a tan, muscled arm stopping the bat, inches from my head.

"Sorry I'm late," a smooth voice apologized.

I watched as the arm blocking the bat from me, turned. The hand attached to the arm gripped the bat, yanking it from Dan's hand.

Dan had an expression of mixed fear and anger on. I knew who was behind me. The bat was pulled over my head and I was suddenly shoved to the left. I kept my balance, staggering only for a moment.

I ignored the cry of pain behind me and made for Wendell, who was now leaning against a car, holding his head. After a step, I was overcome with dizziness. I swayed for a moment, before fixing myself and continuing over to Wendell.

"Are you okay?" I asked in a breathless whisper.

Wendell looked up at me and winced slightly. "Ow, I'm okay. What the hell is happening, Daphne? Who the hell-"

"Save the questions for later," I ordered, my head throbbing from just talking. "I really don't feel like explaining anything right now."

There was silence from behind us now and I heard footsteps approaching. Wendell looked behind me and his expression became so shocked I whipped around quickly, expecting to see one of the thugs.

Mr. Firay stood there, the sleeves on his black shirt pushed up. He held the bat, and his face was emotionless, his mouth a flat line. He lowered the bat, coming up to me and placing a hand on my cheek.

"Ow!" I cried, pulling back and raising a hand to my cheek.

I touched it gingerly. It throbbed angrily. I frowned. That would really hurt in the morning.

Mr. Firay looked behind me. "Are you okay, Wendell?"

"You," Wendell growled. "Do you have something to do with this? Why were those men after Daphne? Where are the other three guys?"

"I've already taken care of them," Mr. Firay responded simply. "As for your other questions, it's up to Daphne to let you know or not."

My head throbbed painfully and I staggered forwards. I clutched it, putting as much pressure on it as I could without hurting it too much. The pounding continued and I fought to keep myself straight.

"What's wrong?" Wendell asked worriedly.

"Nothing," I told him, my voice constricted with pain. "My head just really hurts."

"Give me your car keys, Wendell," I heard Mr. Firay order.

I heard Wendell grumble, but after a second, I heard the jingle of keys. Then suddenly I was swooped off my feet. My surprise from the motion made the pain go away for a minute.

"I can walk fine," I muttered, keeping my head down to make sure no one could see my blush.

"Shut up and let me carry you," Mr. Firay responded, rolling his eyes.

I kept my mouth shut, frowning slightly. It was awkward, Mr. Firay was carrying me princess-style and Wendell was right there. He wagged his eyebrows at me.

That's when I noticed the large bruise on the top of his head, which was bleeding slightly. I gasped, my eyes widening a fraction.

"Wendell! Your head!" I cried, staring at it in dismay.

He shrugged. "I'm sure it looks worse than it is. See?" He touched it slightly and my eyes grew wider. Wendell shook his head, but his face constricted in pain, giving away his facade. I frowned at him and he sighed.

We got to the car and Mr. Firay put me down in the back seat. To my embarrassment he reached over and buckled me.

"I can do that by myself," I told him, blushing from his proximity.

"I know," Mr. Firay responded.

I swear I saw him smirking before he pulled himself out of the car and shut the door. Wendell got into the passenger's seat and Mr. Firay got into the drivers. He started the car and pulled out of the lot.

"Where are we going?" I heard Wendell ask.

"My house," Mr. Firay responded, looking in his rearview mirror at me. "We have a lot to talk about."

**A/N.** So that's that. Next chapter is scheduled Friday, I believe. XD So, tell me: HOW WAS YOUR CHRISTMAS? I got a $20 Gift Card to Coldstone, $40, clothes, and this Club Penguin Plushie (Because my siblings are obsessed with it ). Oh and my family has to share the iPad 2 so I'm happy! XD

Until Friday!

~Lara


	19. Chapter 19:

**A/N. **_Pyon, pyon! Fumu, fumu-yeah, yeah! Howa, howa! Kira, kira-yeah, yeah, yeah! _XD I finally got my sister interested in Shugo Chara! *evil grin* Lol, well that's my random moment for today. Speaking of Shugo Chara and this story: I FOUND THE PERFECT ACTION SONG! So go to this spaced link: _http:/ www. youtube .com/watch?v=GpVGxYPwR90 &feature=autoplay& list=PL0E1803 3D74F 4D158 &lf=results_ma in&play next=9_ or type in "High Speed Action; Shugo Chara" It fits _perfectly!_

By the way, don't be offended if I don't use your ideas. (Sorry, twilightfunatic, but there's a reason -that I've just made up- that MS won't use magic to heal Wendell) It wouldn't be fun to read if everything was predictable, right? But I promise, if you give me something really creative, I'll use it! ^^ It's just, everyone expects MS to use magic. I thought it'd be interesting for a change. XD

Anyways, enjoy your chapter! Every review comes with a free cyber present (for Christmas and New Years)! ^^ HAPPY EARLY NEW YEARS!

**Chapter 19: Boy Brawl**

"Ow," I hissed, trying to pull away from Mr. Firay's grasp. "Stop it! That hurts!"

Mr. Firay sighed for the umpteenth time. "I need to disinfect the cuts, Daphne."

"Why couldn't you use magic? It's probably less painful," I muttered. I know I used to stray away from using magic, but I was getting impatient. He suddenly tensed, applying pressure on my cuts. "Ow!"

He blinked. "Sorry," he paused. "But know this: fairy magic isn't as good as regular healing. Fairy healing usually uses the cocoon -which takes a long time, and you feel the same pain. So in short, this is better, so just let me finish."

"Yeah, stop being a baby," Wendell called from the couch.

I turned to scowl at him. "You made more of a fuss then I did!"

He blushed slightly and looked away from me with a huff. When he did, I saw the bandage wrapped around his head. I felt guilty immediately. I couldn't imagine how much shock he was going into now. In the car, we had explained to him that Mr. Firay was Puck's older brother, but not about the gang. Actually, I didn't even know _that _much about Mustardseed and the gang...

Suddenly, Mr. Firay forced my head back to the front. I immediately locked gazes with him. His gaze was so piercing it made me embarrassed and I had to look down at the floor.

Mr. Firay continued to gently clean my cuts with disinfectant and cotton balls. Every now and then I'd hiss in pain, but Mr. Firay's constant, regular breathing kept me calm.

After what felt like forever to me, but in reality was actually only five or so minutes, he was done. He placed two band-aids on the biggest cuts, and left the rest alone.

"You know, if you weren't so clumsy, you wouldn't have any cuts," Mr. Firay informed me, a smirk playing at his lips.

"Shut up," I muttered, turning pink. "The only reason I fell was because Wendell threw me off balance the first time. And the second time I was tackled down football style, so I don't think this was my fault."

Mr. Firay sighed. "I'm sorry. I knew something was going to happen. I should've stayed closer."

I shook my head. "I didn't expect to have to leave the diner. We had parked right next to it."

"But Daphne didn't see the no parking sign," Wendell added.

I snatched the box of band-aids from Mr. Firay's hands and chucked them at Wendell. They hit him in the bandaged area and I heard him suppress a groan of pain.

"But still," Mr. Firay continued. "I got you into this mess. The least I could do is protect you from getting hurt, and I couldn't even do that. What's worse is that I dragged another person into it. And it's another teenager on top of that."

I placed my right hand on Mr. Firay's shoulder. He looked at me flatly.

"I hate this. I hate how I was dragged into this. I hate how Wendell was dragged into this. I hate being injured. I hate everything about gangs and wish I was never involved with them."

Mr. Firay blinked, looking surprised. He opened his mouth to speak, but I cut him off.

"But since it's too late for all that, all I can do is my best to stay safe, keep you safe, and now keep Wendell safe. I don't want to see anyone else get hurt."

Wendell snorted. "Save the soap opera stuff."

I scowled, stuck my tongue at him. "_Nyeh!_" I looked for something else to chuck. Mr. Firay chuckled, patting my head.

"You're a good girl, Daphne."

I half-smiled. "But why do they hate you so much? So much that they'd even go after one of your students?"

Mr. Firay smirked. "Remember? I told you I did something bad. And I left the gang, which just makes it worse."

"But what did you do?"

Mr. Firay shrugged. "Who knows?"

"Matt."

Mr. Firay raised his eyebrows. "You remembered to call me Matt!"

"Don't change the subject!"

"Wendell," Mr. Firay said, turning to look at him. "Are you ready to hear my tragic story of woe?"

Wendell rolled his eyes. "It better be good. Otherwise I'm going to beat the shit out of you for dragging Daphne into something so dangerous."

"Wendell!" I cried, half shocked, half amused.

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Trust me, I'll let you beat me up anyways."

"Right. Now explain to me from the beginning. Everything."

Mr. Firay sighed and began to explain. I already knew the story, so I went into the kitchen, aiming for something to drink. After a few minutes of fruitless searching, I returned to the living room, empty-handed.

Mr. Firay glanced at me, pausing in his story. "Need something?"

"I'm thirsty."

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Sorry, I haven't been to the grocery store lately. There's some change on the counter. Grab that and go down to the vending machine."

I opened my mouth to refuse, but Mr. Firay's look gave me the impression that I wasn't allowed to say no. I turned on my heel and went to the counter, swiping the change off of it and clenching it in my hand.

"I'll be back then..."

Wendell grunted in reply and I couldn't help an amused smile from slipping onto my face.

I exited into the apartment hallway and headed left. It took me a moment to realize I didn't even know what kind of things the vending machines had, let alone where they were. I hesitated before continuing down the hallway.

What kind of fancy apartment was this to have vending machines? I furrowed my brow, but continued until I made it to the stairwell. There weren't any vending machines in sight. I frowned, and went down to the first floor.

There were three doors now. I peeked through one, which seemed to lead to the parking lot. The other lead to another hallway, and the last led to a room with the vending machines in it.

I went in and made a beeline straight for the machine. I popped in the coins and pressed the button for a coke. It dropped down and I bend to pick it up, immediately pressing it to my sore cheek.

I let out a contented sigh. Oh the wonders cold drinks could do for wounds.

Suddenly, there was a pair of hands on my shoulders. I jumped, letting out a strangled cry, and knocking my can of soda against my cheek, making me hiss in pain. I struggled to get free of whoever had a grip on my shoulders.

When they finally let go, I turned to see a very tall, young man with messy chestnut hair grinning at me. I stared at him curiously for a moment. Why did he look so familiar?

"Daphne? You remember me?"

"Umm..." I hesitated.

The brunette frowned in mock disappointment. "I'm slightly offended that you don't remember me..."

I bit my lip, quickly thinking. Who was this man? I know I had met him before, but I couldn't remember where. But he wasn't an enemy...maybe one of Mr. Firay's friends...

"Sage!" I said suddenly as the name popped into my head.

His expression brightened, and he nodded, a grin back on his face. "You do remember me!"

"Yep," I responded, smiling slightly.

"Are you going back to Matt's apartment?" Sage asked me, surveying me with his green eyes.

I looked away from his gaze and nodded.

"Me too! I'll accompany you!"

I nodded, and together we set off back to the stairwell and towards Mr. Firay's apartment.

"So...how are you?" I asked, trying to be polite.

"As British stereotypes say, I'm jolly good! I'd ask how you are, but it looks like you're a little down for the count."

I chuckled. "You could say that..."

We started climbing the stairs tot he second floor. Sage held open the door that led to the hallway for me. I nodded in thanks.

Sage studied me seriously. "Were you attacked?"

I nodded.

"Where's Matt?"

"Back in his apartment with Wendell."

"Wendell?" Sage repeated.

I took a deep breath. "Long story-"

I was interrupted by a loud crash from down the hallway. Sage and I exchanged startled looks. Muffled yelling could be heard now, and I sprinted the last steps to Mr. Firay's apartment.

I burst through the door, surveying the place quickly.

I caught sight of Wendell and Mr. Firay just in time to see Wendell punch Mr. Firay in the face. I gasped, running towards Wendell.

"You stupid bastard!" Wendell shouted, bringing back his fist again.

Mr. Firay stood there, making no indication that he was hurt, and also not even attempting to protect himself.

"Wendell!" I cried, attempting to stop him from punching Mr. Firay. "Wendell!"

He ripped his arm from my grasp roughly, making me fall forwards. Mr. Firay put out his arm to steady me. Wendell attempted to shove Mr. Firay's arm away and steady me instead, but only managed to knock his hand into my bad cheek.

I groaned in pain, falling over the two of them anyways. Mr. Firay managed to stop me from falling completely. He effortlessly placed me upright on my feet again. I rubbed my cheek gently, glaring at Wendell. He looked back at me guiltily.

"Daphne, I'm sor-"

"What are you doing?" I demanded. "You can't punch a teacher, Wendell!"

"Daphne, it's okay," Mr. Firay cut in. "I deserved it."

I twirled around, staring at him in shock. "How did you deserve it?"

"For making you involved with those gangsters!" Wendell responded, glaring angrily at Mr. Firay. "I didn't know they were after you precisely, let alone it was this asshole's fault."

"Wendell," I reprimanded sharply. "Watch your mouth. And it's not completely his fault!"

Mr. Firay sighed, shaking his head. My heart was pounding so hard I swore people ten miles away could hear it. My hands shook, and my breaths came short, quick, and quivering.

"You could get her killed!" Wendell accused, crossing his arms.

"I know the consequences well, Mr. Piper," Mr. Firay snapped, returning the glare.

"It's not his fault!" I repeated, turning to glare at Wendell. "I'm the one that followed him the night at the fair!"

Wendell's eyes widened slightly. "The fair?"

I quickly shut my mouth, blushing. That was right. I hadn't told Wendell about that incident!

"What do you mean, Daphne?" he demanded.

"I got Daphne caught up in a fight," Mr. Firay told him before I could think of any excuses.

I opened my mouth to protest, but Wendell pushed my out of the way, after Mr. Firay again. I stumbled backwards, and a different pair of arms steadied me this time. I turned to see Sage frowning at the pair in front of him with a sober face.

I turned to them as well now. Mr. Firay had Wendell's arms locked behind his back. Wendell scowled and tried to pull himself free, but it was a fruitless attempt. Let's face it -Mr. Firay was super strong.

"You need to calm down," Mr. Firay ordered.

"Like hell I'll calm down! You put Daphne in danger!"

"I put myself in danger!" I told him exasperated. "Don't listen to Mr. Firay! He's lying!"

"Daphne," Mr. Firay said sharply.

"Just stop fighting," I begged, my eyes beginning to water. "Please..."

Mr. Firay's hard gaze diminished and he released Wendell, whose expression had softened as well.

"I want to go home," I told the pair.

"I'll bring you," Mr. Firay offered immediately. "It's too late to walk."

I shook my head. "No."

Mr. Firay looked at me in surprise. "I'm not letting you go myself."

"I'll go with her," Wendell interjected, scowling at Mr. Firay.

I shook my head again. "I don't want to go with you either, Wendell."

His expression now matched Mr. Firay's.

"You're not going alone," they both warned together.

"_Oi_," Sage cut in. "I'll take her."

Mr. Firay's attention snapped to the man behind me. "When did you get here?"

"Who's he?" Wendell demanded.

I groaned, holding my head. "Enough questions! I want to go home."

Sage put a hand on my shoulder. "Trust me, I'll get you home safely."

Mr. Firay narrowed his eyes slightly. "You better."

Sage chuckled. "Unlike you, I'm not interested in high school girls."

I glanced at Mr. Firay, who stared at Sage, looking stunned. Sage smirked, and I couldn't help a small amused smirk slipping on my lips as well. It was impossible that Mr. Firay felt that way, but it was still amusing to see that expression on his face.

**A/N. **This chapter might've been slightly confusing so I'll try to go into depth with it in the next chapter, hopefully. The characters are a little OOC (who am I kidding? I made Wendell go all freak on MS; he's not a _little _OOC), but what can you do.

I have a feeling you guys will really like Sage's character. Puck's probably only going to show up once or twice, so Sage will make up for that, as will some of MS's split personality-ness. XD

Until...Monday! :O The last four-days-update. WAH! Well, I might be able to do the same for Spring Break if I don't go traveling, so let's be hopeful! ^^

Paalam for now (Good bye for now!)

~Lara


	20. Chapter 20:

**A/N.** Well, this is the last four-day-update. *sniffle* School is a bother, isn't it? I go back tomorrow. :( But anyways, I just wanted to let you guys -the ones that didn't see the review to 'myself'- know that updates are back to weekly! But if I get enough reviews to boost up my ego (teehee) then I might update twice a week. Who knows? THAT DEPENDS ON YOU.

I just realized Red hasn't appeared since chapter 13 (WAHH). Somehow, I'll get her to fit in this one...

**Umm, I have a question: If you've given the review below, could you review saying so? I'd realy like to thank you for your reviews in some way, but I can't identify you if I don't have some kind of nickname:**

_:"And you're second order is to stop calling me Prez!" - wrong your. But  
>that's the only mistake I caught through the whole thing!<br>Still keep watching your dialogue, sometimes it comes across as unnatural.  
>You've come so far since I first started reading your stuff! I'm amazed at how<br>much better you are.  
>Liked it, but it felt like it should be INSIDE a bigger story.<em>

I'm thinking it's Curlscat because she usually writes reviews like this, but she's always logged in, so...? Anyways, if you don't feel like giving yourself a nickname so I can thank you, I'll say thanks anyways! I love your reviews! :)

Besides that, I have a humongous shout-out to **Epiphany on Toast**. She made this drawing on deviantArt of Daphne for this story! The link is on my profile. XD Thanks so much!

Happy New Year! ^^ And thanks to those who read my New Year Oneshot, _Pocky: It's All Love and Games_! Seriously, thanks! Your reviews made me really happy! And thanks for those especially who gave me critiques-I appreciate the critical feedback. :)

Here's...chapter 20!

**Chapter 20: A Reluctant Compromise**

"_Oye! _D, what happened to you?"

I winced at Ariana's loud outburst. "Why are you shouting so early in the morning?"

"Yeah, _why? _I swear, your screaming from the sleepover is still ringing in my head," Red complained, rubbing her ears. "Now I'm 100% sure I'm going to go deaf by the end of this week."

"_Tu cara, _your face," Ariana commented, ignoring Red. The Hispanic beauty touched her own cheek to show me what she meant.

"I fell down the stairs," I mumbled, avoiding her gaze. Red raised an eyebrow at me.

Ariana laughed. "You're so clumsy, _el torpe_."

I forced out a laugh too, even though guilt was washing through me. I was lying to one of my best friends. Actually two-Red and Ariana. I never did tell Red that Mr. Firay was an ex-gangster, or what happened the other night. But I was feeling guilty more to Ariana. She didn't know nearly as much as Red. And she easily believed the lie I just told her- proof of how much she trusted me.

My shoulders sagged. I was an awful person.

Ariana must have noticed my bad mood. She jabbed me in the side. "Well, _vamos a ir a la escuela_! I'm sure whatever reason you are upset about won't matter when you see Mr. Firay!"

I grimaced. Ariana didn't know he was part of the reason of my bad attitude.

It had only been one day since the fight had gone down between Mr. Firay and Wendell. I hadn't gone to school yesterday, just telling Red that I wasn't feeling well, and hoping to have my injuries heal a little more before returning, and apparently Wendell had the same idea.

I was still angry with him-there was no doubt about that. He had punched Mr. Firay in the face for no reason! That wasn't acceptable at all.

But Wendell was just worried about you, another part of me told myself.

I held in a sigh. I was right. Wendell was just worried. It's not like he punched Mr. Firay for no reason. But still...

"Daphne, Daphne, earth to Daphne!" Red said, waving her hand in front of me. "Did you hear anything Ariana just said?"

I snapped my attention onto her, smiling sheepishly. "No, sorry. What did you say, Ariana?"

"I said it was weird how you, Wendell, and Mr. Firay were all absent yesterday, _ayer_," Ariana told me.

"Mr. Firay was out?" I repeated.

Red nodded. "Yeah, we had a substitute."

I frowned slightly. Did Mr. Firay skip? Or did he suddenly get sick overnight? Did something happen?

I suddenly felt sick with worry. I tried to shake it away. I was just being paranoid. Mr. Firay was fine.

When we arrived at the school, Wendell was waiting by the gates, his arms crossed. When he noticed the three of us, he pushed himself off the wall and came towards us. Ariana let out a little gasp and hurried forwards.

"_¡Oh Dios mío!_ What happened to you?" she cried, her eyes wide. "That's a horrible bruise!"

Wendell raised a hand to his face and shrugged. "I fell down the stairs."

Ariana whipped her head towards me, and I quickly threw on a shocked expression. Red blinked.

"D did too!"

Wendell raised his eyebrows at me, an amused smirk appearing on his face. "Is that so?"

I nodded, quickly giving him a smile, then looking away. Red looked suspiciously between us.

"Huh," she said to herself.

I gave Red a questioning look. She returned it.

"Did you two have a fight?"

My heart skipped a beat. How could Red have figured that out already?

"No," I said quickly, waving my hand. "Why would we-"

"We did have a fight," Wendell cut in with a sigh.

Ariana's eyes widened in surprise. "You did? _¿En serio?_"

Wendell nodded. "Yes, and I'd like to talk to her in private about it."

Red shot me a look, as did Ariana. I returned Ariana's with a please-don't-leave-me-here-alone one. She smirked and held up her hand.

"Say no more," she told Wendell. "I'll just go over here with _Rojo_ for a bit..."

I frowned as Ariana dragged Red with her, sauntering away towards the large oak tree that was on the other side of the gate entrance. Wendell turned to me with a frown. I kept my face expressionless.

"What was there to talk about? I knew I had to apologize, but what did Wendell have to say? Was he going to scold me more for getting into this gang problem? It wasn't like it was my fault...I grimaced.

Well, it was partially my fault.

He took a deep breath. "Daphne."

I watched him carefully. "Yes?"

"I'm sorry," he muttered, his eyes downcast.

My eyes widened and I stared at him, my mouth hanging open slightly. Why was he apologizing? What did he have to apologize for?

"For what?" I forced out.

Wendell shifted uncomfortably. "I yelled at you a lot yesterday...I don't want you to be angry."

I blinked, my face expressionless. "You think I was angry because you yelled at me?"

Wendell gave me a confused look. "Aren't you?"

I returned Wendell's look with my own exasperated one. "No! Are you stupid? I could care less about that!"

"Then what?"

"Wendell, you punched the guy I...you know," I muttered, my face heating up.

"Oh," Wendell responded, frowning again.

"Not to mention, this isn't all his fault!" I continued quickly. "I don't know what he told you, but I'm sure he blamed everything on himself, which isn't true at all! And I'm not angry with you Wendell, I was actually going to apologize too."

"You were?" he responded, raising an eyebrow.

I nodded. "I know you only get angry because you were worried about me...and I was a jerk about it."

Wendell laughed. "Daphne, don't worry about it. I kind of understand."

I gave him a questioning look. "Understand what?"

"If I was in that guy's position, I would also take the blame onto myself. And I guess it was a little out of line to actually punch him...so, I'm sorry about that too."

"You need to apologize to Mr. Firay about that, before I forgive you," I told Wendell, crossing my arms.

His eyes nearly bulged out of his sockets. "There is no way that I will ever apologize to him!"

"Then your apology to me won't be accepted," I responded stubbornly.

Wendell scowled. "Why can't you just accept it?"

"Because I'm not the one you punched!"

"But-"

"No buts," I said quickly. "You will apologize for punching him. He could press charges, you know."

Wendell scowled. "I know."

"Make sure you apologize to him."

Wendell rolled his eyes. "If I do that, are we good? No hard feelings?"

I laughed, lightly punching Wendell on his shoulder. "Wendell, you're one of my best friends. If there were 'hard feelings' over something like this, I'd be worried about our friendship."

Wendell grinned. "That's true. And what would you do without a handsome man who's secretly an Everafter not around?"

"Well, Mr. Heywood's handsome, _and _an Everafter, too," I responded, smirking. "And you just recently turned handsome. You used to be a chubby middle-schooler who was scared of everything."

Wendell shook his head. "I think I liked it better when I wasn't positive that you liked him."

"Wait," I started, staring at him. "You said you already knew when you told me to admit it."

Wendell snorted. "How am I supposed to know, Daphne? You didn't tell me anything!"

I stared at him, my mouth opened in shock. "So you lied?"

"I got you to admit it, didn't I?" Wendell responded with a smirk.

"But still-"

"_¡Guau! _Mr. Firay! What happened?" I heard Ariana cry. Red let out a small gasp next to her.

Wendell looked over his shoulder, an amused expression on his face. I quickly turned around to see Ariana and Red staring at Mr. Firay in shock. Mostly Ariana; Red only seemed a bit surprised. A noticeable bruise on his cheek caught my attention easily.

I quickly shot Wendell an annoyed look. He covered his mouth, trying not to laugh.

"I fell down the stairs," I heard Mr. Firay tell the two.

Ariana's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. She quickly looked over at Wendell and me, gesturing with her hands frantically. She pointed at Mr. Firay, then her cheek, and made some more frantic gestures. Picture one of your friends doing this; it's quite comical.

I tried to hold in my laugh, but Ariana's face made it impossible. I burst out laughing, turning away from the three.

Ariana and Red came over to us, Mr. Firay trailing behind her.

"Did you hear that? Mr. Firay fell down the stairs too!" Ariana told me, her eyes still wide.

I cleared my throat, glancing at Mr. Firay, who was staring at me questioningly.

"What a coincidence," I responded, faking shock.

"And you all have bruises on your cheeks..." Red commented thoughtfully.

For one panic-stricken moment, I thought I saw suspicion flash across Ariana's face, but before I was positive, it was gone. I relaxed slightly. There was no way she could figure out what happened.

That thought brought guilt back to my gut. We were all now lying to Ariana and Red (kind of). Even if it was for their own good, I felt awful about it. Those two had been my best friends for a long time...I shook my head. I'd rather lie and have them safe, than tell the truth and put the two in danger.

"I'm going to class," I heard Wendell mutter.

I jumped, momentarily forgetting he was there. I turned to see him with an irritated expression on his face. I frowned slightly.

Wendell looked at me for a second, his eyes narrowed. Then he turned to Mr. Firay.

"You," he started, getting Mr. Firay's attention.

"Yes?" Mr. Firay responded politely.

"Sorry about yesterday," Wendell apologized, his voice hard and strained.

Shock passed across Mr. Firay's face. Wendell turned and started hurrying towards the school building. Mr. Firay turned to me, his eyebrows raised.

"What was that about?" Red asked, looking after Wendell.

"Yesterday, he knocked into me at the grocery store and I dropped everything. It wasn't a very big deal," Mr. Firay lied smoothly, smiling politely at Red and Ariana.

"Ah, _ya veo_, I see," Ariana responded, tapping her chin.

"Ariana!" a familiar voice called suddenly.

I looked up to see Josh hurrying towards Ariana. She grinned and waved.

"Hey!" she called back.

"Ariana," Josh panted again when he was closer. "I have to you something! Come here! You come too, Red. Tom wants to talk to you."

Ariana grinned at Josh, shaking her head while Red's cheeks turned pink. Then they both turned to Mr. Firay and me. "Apparently, we have to go see something, so we'll see you two later."

Before I could say anything, Josh grabbed the two girl's hands and started dragging them away, leaving me alone with Mr. Firay.

I did my best to avoid his gaze, staring at the ground as hard as I could. I refused to look up, even though I felt his eyes on me.

What was I supposed to say? Should I apologize? Should I be mad? I didn't know. I wanted to be mad. He had put all the blame on himself. But being mad about that made me feel like a jerk. He was only trying to help me.

A sigh slipped out of my mouth, and I quickly covered it, blushing.

"Daphne, look at me."

Involuntarily, my head whipped up to look at him. He was frowning at me. I slowly frowned back.

"I see you got home safely," Mr. Firay commented.

I raised my eyebrows. That was the last thing I had expected Mr. Firay to say just then. I couldn't help a smile from slipping onto my mouth.

"Yeah, Sage's a nice guy," I told him.

Mr. Firay nodded. "I agree..."

There was an awkward silence again. I averted my gaze from Mr. Firay again.

"Daphne, are you mad at me?"

I quickly looked at Mr. Firay again, cringing as my neck cricked. I rubbed it, muttering a colorful word. And by colorful I don't mean curse words.

Mr. Firay watched me with an amused look.

"I'm not mad," I told him.

He looked relieved. "Good."

"I'm irritated."

Mr. Firay frowned. "Why?"

"Because! You put all the blame on yourself, Mr. Firay!" I responded, clenching my fist. "That's what caused Wendell to punch you! You should've just said that it was my fault, too!"

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "Daphne, get over yourself."

I stared at him in shock, my face reddening. "Get over myself?"

Mr. Firay nodded, putting a hand on my head. He ruffled my hair. "You're a good girl."

I stared at Mr. Firay in confusion. He wasn't making any sense at all! Mr. Firay chuckled at my expression.

"Make sure you don't have any plans after school for awhile," he told me, changing the subject.

I was about to tell him not to change the subject, but I dropped it.

"Why?"

"You've got a lot of work ahead of you if you don't want me to press charges on Wendell."

I gaped at him.

Mr. Firay smirked, ruffling my hair once more. I stared at him, stupefied. Before I could say anything, he turned and began walking towards the school building.

I scowled. That stupid, blackmailing, devil of a teacher.

**A/N. **Zzzzz Zzzzz Zzzz..._NOT! _I should be, but I can't. School is tomorrow and I just feel like staying up. :P

Umm, it's 9:00 where I am now, so I have to go *frowns*. But an update shoulder come on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. Least likely-Saturday; Most likely-Sunday

Bye bye! Hope you all had a great vacation!

~Lara


	21. Chapter 21:

**A/N.***points shaky finger at you in shock* O-ohh...my...U-usui...

*bawls* I LOVE YOU GUYS! *squeezes in hugs* Oh my gosh! So far, if you've seen the reviews for elligoat's 'Best Sisters Grimm Story of 2011', you'll see that FOR THE FIRST TIME WAS NOMINATED! Holy crown! That's...that's...gawsh, I cry too much (turn away from me for a second, lol)...

Okay, I'm well now. *wipes stray tear* As you can see, I am a big, fat, crybaby. Okay, I'm done being emotional. Anyways, I saw I was mentioned, so far, in 13 reviews (minus my good friend Blair's, that is)...My golly, I couldn't have wished for more amazing readers! And all you silents -my new name for the people who read, but don't review- *wags a finger* I see some of you have made your appearances by nominating me! XD You all are awesome. Just awesome. I mean, I hardly review anymore *ashamed look* but, I'm going to make a deal:

I most likely won't win, but if you guys are able to get me into the 'second round' of the contest, you don't even have to make me win the whole thing, but I will update five chapters (FIVE CHAPTERS?) in one week. Yeah. It probably will take a lot of energy out of me, but my Duke TIP thingamajig will be over by then, and...yup! I'm going to if you guys give me a big enough boost. So yeah-just making it to the second round is enough. XD But that'll be around Feb. 2nd (just because that's when Elli announces the winner ;3).

**Before you read the chapter, if you can't handle OOC MS(and I mean **_**more **_**than he already is :3) between Daphne and MS, then skip the first...20 paragraph thingamabobs. Well, at least until you see "Ms. Grimm...Ms. Grimm, are you etc., etc., etc." **

Here! Is! Chapter...21!

**Chapter 21: Dream On**

"Mr. Firay? I'm coming in," I called through the closed biology room door.

I opened it slowly, peering in. Mr. Firay was nowhere to be seen. I frowned slightly, walking further into the room.

"Mr. Firay?"

No response.

I walked towards the supply room. I reached out and grabbed the door handle slowly, pulling the door open. Suddenly, a hand shot out, grabbing my arm and pulling me into the supply room. The door was shut behind me quickly, and I felt myself being pushed against it.

I looked at Mr. Firay in surprise, my heart pounding heavily. "Y-you scared the heck out of me!"

He chuckled smoothly, his hands on either side of me. "Sorry to surprise you."

I nodded, and blushed, now realizing how close to me he was. He was barely a foot away. Mr. Firay smirked when he noticed my blush. He leaned in closer to me.

"I love it when you blush," he whispered, his lips at my ear. "It's very cute."

I caught my breath, my eyes widening. "Mr. Firay, are you feeling okay?"

He chuckled, pulling his head away slightly. His eyes smoldered.

"I don't know," he admitted. "Lately, I've been getting these urges..."

"What kind of urges?" I asked him quietly, my mouth dry.

"It'd be easier to show you than tell you," he responded, a smirk playing at his lips.

"H-how?" I asked, my eyes glued to his.

"Like this," he responded, leaning closer.

Mr. Firay gently pressed his lips against my neck, making me freeze. My eyes widened. What was he doing?

He slowly kissed up my neck, to my jaw line; following along that to the base of my ear and placed a kiss in the hollow beneath it. I shuddered, breathing out in a rush, and turning my head.

"Look at me, Daphne," he ordered.

I turned my head back again, staring into his eyes once more. My hazel against his blue. He smirked as he leaned closer once more. His face was only inches away, a few more inches and-

"Ms. Grimm...Ms. Grimm, are you paying attention? Ms. Grimm, wake up!"

I quickly sat up, looking around the room alertly. Mr. Firay was standing in front of my desk, an amused smirk on his face.

"Is my class so boring that you feel the need to sleep in it, Ms. Grimm?"

A few girls in the class giggled, and I blushed.

"S-sorry," I muttered, looking down at the floor.

Mr. Firay laughed and I felt him put a hand on my shoulder. "It's fine, just don't do it again."

My face grew hotter as I remembered what I had been dreaming about. I stared at the floor, shaking my head in disbelief. This had been the first dream I had of Mr. Firay. It was so embarrassing! And totally un-realistic. _Dream on, Daphne_, my inner voice scoffed at me.

"We're on page 223, Ms. Grimm," Mr. Firay told me, before going back to the front of the classroom.

I quickly flipped my book a few pages, still blushing slightly. It was weird having Mr. Firay call me by Ms. Grimm. I remembered he used to do that, but he had suddenly switched to calling me Daphne... I frowned slightly. When had he started calling me by my first name? I couldn't remember.

Class passed by quickly, and Mr. Firay let us back up ten minutes before the bell. I watched him curiously, wondering why he let the class off so early.

"Remember," Mr. Firay started, gathering the class' attention, "the field trip forms are due this Thursday if you want to go on the overnight beach trip Saturday. Make sure you get your parent or guardian to sign it for you. You don't want to miss out."

"Beach trip?" I repeated, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion.

"I don't know what he's talking about either," a voice commented from beside me, sounding confused.

I jumped slightly and turned around to see Wendell towering over me. He grinned.

"Have a nice nap?"

"Shut up," I muttered.

"Are you going to be going?" a girl named Allie suddenly spoke up, directing her question towards Mr. Firay.

Mr. Firay smiled at her and shook his head. "No, only a limited amount of chaperones could go, and other teachers wanted to go more than me, so I let them."

My heart sank slightly. Mr. Firay wouldn't be going to the beach? It wouldn't be as fun without him...

I mentally slapped myself. What was I thinking? It didn't matter if Mr. Firay went to the beach or not. If I went on the trip, it'd be to have fun with my friends, not about hanging out with Mr. Firay.

"It won't be as fun without you," Allie complained.

Mr. Firay smiled slightly. "I'm sure it will be the same even if I don't go."

"Nu-uh!" Allie responded, pouting.

I grimaced in annoyance. If Mr. Firay did go, girls would surround him anyway.

The bell rang and I quickly closed my biology book, stuffing it into my backpack.

"I'm not waiting," Wendell informed me, walking away.

"You never do," I responded, rolling my eyes and remembering the countless times he's sprinted out of the classroom.

I hitched my backpack over my shoulder, making for the exit. I was the last one to leave, but before I reached the door, Mr. Firay stopped me.

"Daphne," he started, making me freeze.

Images of my dream came bursting into my head and I had to quickly shake them away, my cheeks faintly heating up.

I turned slowly, offering him a smile. "Yes, Matt?"

He raised an eyebrow. "We're in school, Daphne. Don't call me Matt."

I blushed when I realized my mistake. "I'm sorry, I-"

Mr. Firay chuckled. "No harm done. No one's around."

"What do you want?" I asked, getting straight to the point.

"To remind you to come to my room after school today...and while you're at it, bring me a snack from the school store."

"Can't you get one yourself?"

"I could," Mr. Firay responded, a smirk slipping onto his face, "but I don't want to."

I scowled. "I'm not getting you a snack."

"Really now?"

Mr. Firay moved away from his desk, walking over to me slowly. I stood my ground, staring at him determinedly. He stopped about a foot away from me.

"Hmm..."

I watched cautiously as Mr. Firay studied my face. He frowned slightly, raising his hand. I resisted the urge to take a step back. I shut my eyes quickly when he touched my face.

"This looks really bad," he commented quietly.

My eyes shot open and I stared at him. Where did that come from? Wasn't he going to blackmail me into getting him a snack? I watched him warily.

"It's not as bad as it looks," I told him, attempting to turn my head.

He held it in place, frowning at the bruise. "Have you iced it?"

I nodded. "For about two hours last night. What about yours?"

Mr. Firay smirked slightly. "Someone like me doesn't need to ice his wounds. I can suck it up."

I scowled at him. "You're such a-"

Suddenly, a loud noise filled the air. I was confused for a moment until I realized it was the bell. Mr. Firay dropped his hand and his smirk grew wider.

"You're late."

I glared at him. "Like I don't know that! Where's your class?"

"I don't have one this period," he told me, shrugging. "Now, I suggest you get going..."

"Can't have a late pass?" I begged.

"Are you going to get me a snack after school?" he responded, his eyes lighting up with amusement.

I scowled at him for a moment before sighing in defeat. "Fine."

He chuckled, walking back over to his desk. He grabbed one of the yellow slips of paper and began to write on it. When he finished, he gave me the piece of paper.

"You'd better hurry. I put the time that you left two minutes ago...you should almost be to your class by now..."

My eyes widened and I quickly turned and dashed out of his room and into the empty hallway. I sprinted down the hallway, hoping to reach my next class quickly.

I scowled to myself. Mr. Firay was such a jerk.

When the last bell sounded, signaling the end of the day, I slowly trudged my way to the school store. I didn't even know what Mr. Firay wanted! I stood in line for the store, frowning to myself.

Suddenly, there were a pair of arms around me, and a weight on my back. I staggered forwards a few steps, looking behind me to see Ariana. She grinned, still grinning onto me. "Yo!"

"What are you doing?" I asked, peeling her arms off me.

"I was gonna ask you the same thing, _amiga_," she responded, laughing.

"Buying food from the school store?" I responded, smiling slightly.

"I knew that, _sabia que_," Ariana said. "But you never buy food, _comprar alimentos_, from _tienda Escolar_, so it's weird."

"It's not for me," I responded with a sigh.

"Who is it for then?"

I opened my mouth to reply, but cut myself short. I couldn't tell Ariana who I was buying the food for. With that forbidden love idea of hers, she'd tease me about it for who knows how long. I grimaced slightly.

"Um, myself," I told her.

"Okay..." she responded, sounding confused. "Anyway! What are you doing right now? Do you want to go downtown, _centro de la ciudad_?"

I shook my head. "I have to stay after school."

"Why?"

I hesitated for a moment. "Detention..."

It wasn't a complete lie. What I was doing was basically detention. Well no, it was black mail, but I would never tell anyone that. And if I did, Mr. Firay would surely beat me up.

"For who?" Ariana asked, continuing her mini interrogation.

"Mr. Firay," I said with a sigh.

Ariana blanked for a moment, but then a huge smirk spread across her face. "Oh, really?"

"Yep."

"What did you do this time?"

"I, er...fell asleep in class," I told her.

Again, it wasn't exactly a lie. That could've gotten me a detention in another class, so why not Mr. Firay's?

"How could you fall asleep in that class?" Ariana gasped. "Surely even if the class was boring, just looking at Mr. Firay should keep you awake, _muy despierto_!"

I snorted. "You sound like a fan girl."

"He's cute," Ariana said with another smirk. "I can't help it."

"And what does Josh say about this?"

Ariana shrugged. "Josh doesn't care_ porque _he knows Mr. Firay is too old for me."

"There you go."

"But he's not too old _for you,_ _para tu_," Ariana continued, nudging me in the ribs with her elbow.

I rolled my eyes at her, entering the mini store. I searched the items quickly, deciding to get something for me too while I was here. I grabbed the bar of Kit-Kat calling my name, some chocolates, and a bag of gummy worms. For Mr. Firay, I decided on a bag of salt and vinegar chips. I smirked to myself; hardly anyone I knew besides myself liked this flavor of chips (of course, I had other favorites), and I hoped Mr. Firay didn't like them. He never told me specifically what to get, so it couldn't be helped if he got something he didn't like.

"Well you have fun with your detention," Ariana said, exiting the store with me. "And I want to hear about it _esta noche_."

I rolled my eyes. "There will be nothing to hear about."

Ariana smirked. "You never know."

I sighed, shaking my head. Ariana laughed, giving me a quick hug.

"_Adios_."

"See you tomorrow," I responded, waving once.

With the bag of salt and vinegar chips in my hand, I started down the first floor highway towards the science wing. When I reached Mr. Firay's hall, I felt my heartbeat begin to increase.

This was the first time I'd be completely alone with him with no one to interrupt us since Wendell made me confirm my feelings. I swallowed nervously.

Hopefully he wouldn't grab me by my collar again.

**A/N. **And, done! ^-^' Sorry I ended it there. You guys have no idea how long that took me, and how sorry I am that I didn't upload yesterday. If it turned out bad, let me rip out my hair and them I'll fix it. ^^ Anyways, thanks to those of you who were really patient with me (meaning all of you-I didn't get any hate messages so I'm happy!)!

Oh! And I found a new way of sending you messages without 'false updating'. I'll review my own story. And I will stick to this: Every single weekend (Sunday, Saturday, or Friday) I will post an anonymous review on this story saying sorry if I forget to update or if something comes up. Only then, though. Or if I have something important. XD

Umm, do I need to say anything else? Well, if you could, would you vote for me in Elli's 'Best Sisters Grimm Story of 2011'? You guys might want to nominate 'Daphne's Distraction', but unfortunately, that was published in 2010, so it doesn't count. So, vote for _For the First Time_? I'll love you guys anyways! ^^ But remember our deal *wags fingers* **If I get into the next round-five chapters in one week!**

Stay cool in school (even though you don't want to ;D)!

~LαΓα


	22. Chapter 22:

**EDIT: I WILL BE UPDATING SOMETIME WEDNESDAY! IF YOU WANT IT SOONER, PLEASE BOOST UP MY EGO WITH REVIEWS!**

**A/N. **Hi, hi, hi! Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day! ^^ To start off the chapter, let me just say how much I love you guys. I honestly do! Thanks for sticking with me and this story-I really appreciate it. *sees stares* What? I can't say thank you from time to time? It should be a usual occurrence you know…

TO CURLSCAT: Mustardseed isn't going to pull her into the closet. Enough said. XD

If I think of anything else to say, it'll be in the bottom A/N. For now, here's chapter 22!

**Chapter 22: When You Give A Student Detention**

Before I had the chance to knock on the door, I was pulled inside Mr. Firay's room by my collar. Whoa, déjà vu much? Not with my dream, but this has happened before, hasn't it?...

Not with my dream…

I suddenly turned bright red, freaking out. Mr. Firay had me against the door, freezing up against me. _Oh grapes, oh grapes, oh grapes…_If I wasn't having all these thoughts jumbling in my head, I might've noticed I was comfortable in this position. Wait, what am I saying?

"Mr. Firay…you can let go of me," I squeaked.

He looked down at me. "Oh," he laughed. "Sorry. I thought I saw a few other girls out today. Feels like déjà vu, huh?"

"Uh-huh…" I turned away, hoping he wouldn't see my blush, and tried to calm myself down. I then glanced at the snacks in my hands. "Oh! These are for you." I smirked as I saw him pick up the bag of chips with an expressionless face.

Then he smiled.

"How did you know salt and vinegar was my favorite flavor of chips?"

I stared blankly at Mr. Firay. He couldn't be serious. He smirked back at me, opening the bag of chips and eating one. So much for that idea.

I glanced around the room and my attention was drawn to the homework section on the board. Getting the permission slip for the field trip signed was under my grade's homework.

"What's the field trip?" I asked, turning back to Mr. Firay.

He stared at me curiously for a moment, and then realization swept across his face. "Oh, that's right. You were out yesterday."

"How do you know? You were out too."

"Attendance form," he informed me, an amused smirk on his face.

"Oh," I responded simply.

"There's a class trip to the beach on Saturday," Mr. Firay started, going over to his desk. "I have a form somewhere if you want one…They are staying overnight at a hotel by the beach."

"I want one," I told him quickly.

He frowned at me. "Are you sure?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

Mr. Firay shrugged. "Never mind."

"Okay…?"

Mr. Firay pulled out a sheet of paper, and handed it to me. I scanned it quickly, and put it into my backpack.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

A thought suddenly popped into my head and I frowned slightly.

"Say, Mr. Firay…"

"Matt," he corrected me, raising an eyebrow.

"Matt," I said, rolling my eyes –a trait I had got from Sabrina. "Why don't you ever have a detention list on the board?"

Mr. Firay eyed me for a moment before shrugging. "I didn't realize I had to have one."

"You don't, but most teachers do to remember who had a detention," I told him, looking at his desk. "And I've also noticed that you don't have any detention slips either."

"They're just in my drawer."

I frowned deeper. "Come to think of it…I've never heard of anyone saying that they've got a detention from you, either." I looked at him curiously. I was in full detective mode at this point. "Why is that?"

Mr. Firay cleared his throat. "I don't know what you're talking about. I give detentions."

"Yeah, to me," I snorted. "But how come I've never heard anyone else say they have?"

"I don't know," he responded casually.

"The girls would surely gloat about it, and the guys would complain…but ever since you started working here, no one has said anything about a detention with you."

Mr. Firay sighed and looked at me. "Why are you so interested?"

I shrugged. "No reason really, the thought just suddenly popped into my head."

Mr. Firay stayed quiet for a moment, and I went over to the white board, debating on asking whether I should clean it for him or not. It wasn't like he seemed to have anything else planned for me to do.

"I'm not allowed to have students serve detention with me," Mr. Firay said, breaking the silence.

I turned to look at him in surprise. "What? Why?"

Mr. Firay looked over at me with a smirk. "Can't you figure it out? A young, extremely handsome, kind man like myself being alone in a room with a high schooler?"

I rolled my eyes. "You're a teacher. Nothing could happen since it's illegal."

"Mmm," Mr. Firay responded, frowning at me slightly.

For some reason, I felt like what I had said had dampened his mood slightly, but before I could comment on it, another thought suddenly popped into my head. I glared at him. "If you weren't allowed to give out detentions, how come I got one the first week?" I demanded, crossing my arms.

Mr. Firay smirked, shrugging slightly. "I had a feeling you'd be a fun person to tease…and boy was I right."

"You're a jerk, you know that?'

He laughed. "And I take pleasure in the fact."

I scowled at him. "Well, now I know that if you ever give me a detention again, I won't have to go."

"You'll go anyway, though."

I stared at him, my mouth drying slightly. Had he figured something out? Why would he make that comment? He must have mistaken my look for a confused one.

"Because it'll be blackmail, of course," he continued simply.

I gave him a flat look. "Don't say such things so lightly."

Mr. Firay laughed, his unruly hair falling into his face. I was taken aback by his looks for a moment, and forced myself to look away as a warm blush spread onto my face. I needed to learn how to control my horrible blushing habits.

A silence settled in and I awkwardly played with my fingers while Mr. Firay stared at me. I finally snapped my attention to him. He raised an eyebrow.

"What do you want me to do?" I demanded, the silence getting to me.

Mr. Firay looked at me curiously. "What do you mean?"

:Obviously you need me to do manual labor," I responded. "Otherwise you wouldn't have blackmailed me into coming."

Mr. Firay laughed. "I wouldn't really call it blackmail…"

I stared flatly at him. He grinned back.

"Whatever," I responded, sighing deeply.

"Follow me," Mr. Firay said suddenly, beckoning me towards the supply room. "While we're waiting for him, you can help me store today's cooking materials from the tables."

"Him?" I echoed, following Mr. Firay into the supply room.

I blushed faintly, remembering my dream, and remembering what happened a few minutes ago, but I quickly shook it out of my head. There was no way that would ever happen –the former, I mean. Mr. Firay would probably pull me in by my collar every time I come after school.

"Wash out those measuring cups and whatnot," Mr. Firay ordered, ignoring me completely.

I sighed, walking over to the sink where the utensils were. Something hit me in the back of my head and I turned around to see Mr. Firay nodding to the ground where the thing that hit me lay. I looked down to see a pair of gloves.

"Wear those just in case," he suggested, before turning his back to me.

I looked at the measuring cups warily before picking up the gloves and putting them on. "What ingredients were you exactly using today?" There was some sort of sticky substance on the materials.

Mr. Firay looked over at me with a smirk. "Nothing too bad; it was turned into food, of course. You wouldn't die."

I rolled my eyes, picking up one of them up. If anything happened, at least I could sue him. The thought brought a smile to my face.

I turned on the sink and began washing the measuring cup, filling it with water and soap, shaking it, and pouring the water out. I then rubbed the outside part of the cup. When I was done, I put it upside down on a paper towel and started on the next one. About halfway through them, I felt a presence next to me.

"You're slow," Mr. Firay commented, looking over my shoulder.

"Look, I'm going as fast as I can!" I snapped, raising the hand with the measuring cup in annoyance.

Water from the cup sloshed out, going over my shoulder and into Mr. Firay's face. I quickly turned around In shock to see Mr. Firay frowning at me, water dripping down his face.

"Sorry," I apologized, trying not to laugh. "At least I didn't put the soap on that one yet."

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes, wiping his face off with the back of his sleeve. "I need to go to the conference room for a minute. Stay here."

"Okay," I responded, turning back to the sink.

Mr. Firay ruffled my hair and chuckled to himself before exiting the room. I looked after him for a minute, trying to fix my hair with my forearm. Why did he do that? As if my hair didn't look bad as it was without him having to mess with it. I sighed to myself, picking up the next test tube.

Hair mussing…that was like a brotherly gesture. Or a fatherly one…I froze, my mouth falling open slightly. Did Mr. Firay think of me as a dad would his daughter? The thought made me sick (because that meant Puck would also be my uncle), but it was possible. I shook my head violently. That wasn't it. It couldn't possibly be it, and if it was, then I would change that.

Suddenly, I felt a pair of arms encircle my waist. I shrieked and jumped violently in surprise, dropping the glass beaker (1) in my hand. It fell to the ground and smashed. I struggled for a moment, trying to release myself from the mystery person's arms. The person holding me chuckled, not letting go of me.

"Did I surprise you?" a familiar voice asked.

"Sage?" I asked, turning my head and coming face-to-face with the brunette.

"Hi there," he responded with a grin.

"Daphne? What's wrong?" a new voice called out in a worried voice.

Sage turned me around, his strong arms still around my waist. I struggled for a moment until I realized I had no chance of escaping his grasp. Mr. Firay appeared, his eyes flashing around the room before landing on Sage.

"Oh, it's just you," Mr. Firay said, a frown on his face, but looking relieved. His eyes moved to Sage's arms around my waist. "What are you doing?"

"Showing the love," Sage responded, squeezing me.

"Hey," I said, trying to get out of his grasp. "What love?"

"That's cold," Sage stated. "I thought last night meant something…"

"Let her go," Mr. Firay ordered, rolling his eyes. "I thought you 'aren't interested in high school girls'?"

Sage chuckled and released me. "Feelings change, you know."

"In two days?"

"Maybe."

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes again. "Whatever. Daphne, let's go."

"Let's go?" I repeated, giving him a questioning look.

Mr. Firay nodded. "Now that Sage's here, we can get started."

"With what?"

"Teacher you how to fight, obviously," Sage responded for him, looking at me like I was the densest person on earth.

I stared back at him.

…What?

**A/N. ***pulls at hair* I'm sorry it's so short! I'll try to update again today, or tomorrow. Or Wednesday. :3 I should be looking up stuff for my science power point, but I've been writing-deprived –if that's even a word.

Oh, and for the title of this chapter was inspired by "When You Give A Mouse A Cookie". ^^ But When You Give A Student Detention…You're Really Not Allowed To! ^^ Lol.

I love Sage. He's just awesome to me. ^^ If I get enough of an ego boost, for sure, I'll update today. **(EDIT: I WILL ONLY BE ABLE TO UPDATE WITH AN EGO BOOST. So I'm actually updating Wednesday. Tuesday if I'm happy and not as tired...)**

Oh! And remember, **if I'm able to get into the next round of "The Best Story of 2011" on Elligoat's profile, a whole week with five updates. Five. Yes, five.**

(1)Glass Beakers can be used to mix and serve salad dressings and drinks.

~Lara


	23. Chapter 23:

**EDIT: OH SHOOOOOOTTTT! GUYS! I FORGOT TO TELL YOU! In order to protest against SOPA -a law that wants to ban sites like Facebook, Twitter, FANFICTION- the internet will be 'closed' tomorrow. So, there probably won't be an update. :( Lo siento (sorry!). Just...bear a day without me, lol.**

**A/N. ***falls out of chair* …

….

….

**ARE YOU ALL NUTS? YOU MADE ME FEEL GUILTY FOR NOT UPDATING MONDAY! **I almost started crying because you all gave me these awesome reviews…and I don't update the same day. 11 friggin' reviews…including mine…_in one day_, that is, (I'm talking about Monday night)…That's…whoa. You really want chapters! Thanks you guys! I'm sorry I didn't update again yesterday –I saw all the review alerts after dinner and I couldn't upload this in time. But…thanks you guys, thank you so much. :D I'm so happy I got a fanfiction and, and…oh no, I'm going to start crying again…

AT CAT: Waahh? Sage is pretty much Puck (I mean, an older and a little more mature Puck)! Because this story seems Puck-deprived, I wanted to make someone who would fill in his shoes while he was gone. But I'm sure by the end of the story, he won't be so creepy-ish.

**I might disappear next week. **My Duke TIP test is on the 28th of January, and I need time to study for it. This test is really important to my parents and I (my siblings play no participation in this, haha) so I hope you all understand.

AT ZIA MIKAL: Sorry I got your hopes up, then you realized 'Ch. 23' wasn't a chapter...but now it is! ^^ I stayed up late writing this. My mom thought I was doing my homework (actually, I am -.-).

(Oh, and that shout out I talked about in the A/N. Ch 23 will come in tomorrow's update. ^^)

**THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU FOR GETTING ME INTO THE NEXT ROUND OF TBSGS2011! As promised, a five-day-update's coming up in the week of Feb. 2 (around that ^^). But…**

**Would you like a 6-day-update instead?**

**Then get me into another round? Please? :3**

Aside from that, here's chapter 23!

**Chapter 23: The Basics of Fighting**

"Teaching me how to fight?" I responded, raising my eyebrow.

"That's what I said... you aren't that bright are you?" Sage responded.

I ignored him, turning to Mr. Firay. He gestured me towards him. I moved around Sage and walked up to him.

"Why do I need to know how to fight?" I asked him. "I mean, I know some basics but..."

"In case something like the other night happens and for some reason I'm not there to save you," Mr. Firay explained, flicking my forehead. "I don't want to see you get seriously injured because of me."

"I'm not sure if fighting against them is the smartest idea though," I responded honestly. "Won't it just give them more of a reason to come after me?"

Sage scoffed. "They have reason enough already. Haven't you got into a mix with them twice already? Just knowing you know Matt is enough for them."

I frowned. That's what they said about Wendell when I had told them to leave him alone the other night. What kind of people were these gangsters? Why did they hate Mr. Firay so much?

"Mr. Firay," I started, looking up at him.

"Matt," he corrected me.

"Matt," I said, frowning. "What exactly did you do to make them hate you so much?"

Mr. Firay suddenly tensed, his fists tightening. "I told you already, didn't I? I left the gang."

"That's obviously not the only thing you did!"

"It is, now shut up about it."

"I'll shut up when you tell me the truth!" I argued, stepping in front of him. "Just tell me."

"Drop it, Daphne."

"No!"

"Yes, now let's go," Mr. Firay ordered, putting a hand on my shoulder, and pushing me forwards.

"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me," I responded boldly.

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "Sage, grab her and take her out the back. I'll go meet you at my house."

"Will do," Sage responded, appearing behind me and grabbing me. "Let's go, kid."

"No," I said firmly, keeping my ground. "I want to know why they hate Mr. Firay so much and why, otherwise I'm not moving anywhere."

"Matt," Sage corrected me, putting his hands on my waist. "Now let's go."

He suddenly hoisted me off my feet and over his shoulder. I gasped, flailing my arms wildly. Sage chuckled, placing a hand on my lower back to keep my steady.

"Let me go!" I demanded, struggling against him. "This could be considered kidnap! Matt!"

Mr. Firay looked at me with an amused expression. "Yes, Ms. Grimm?"

"Tell him to let me go!"

"Will you willingly come along then?"

I hesitated, scowling at him. "Yes..."

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Sure you will. Go on Sage. And watch your hand."

Sage laughed. "Okay."

Sage left the room with me in tow. I struggled to get out of his grasp. He chuckled at my fruitless attempts.

"What is up with adults thinking I can't walk by myself?" I growled, giving up.

"Technically, I'm not an adult."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty," Sage responded simply.

"That's close enough. You can be considered an adult at eighteen,' I told him, looking around to make sure no one was in the hallways.

"But technically, you're considered an adult at twenty-one, and you can drink at that age."

"Why does that matter?"

Sage laughed, turning a corner in the hallway. He looked behind him for a second, and then put me down. "What Matt doesn't know won't hurt him, so don't run away."

"I won't run away," I responded, frowning slightly.

"Good, now hurry, I want to beat Matt to his house."

Sage grabbed my upper arm and began jogging out of the building. I stumbled along, trying to keep up with him. His strides were longer and quicker, so I had to basically run to. We came to what I assumed to be his car, and he gestured for me to get in and buckle. I did so, and he got in, and not even five seconds later he was peeling out of the parking lot.

I looked over at Sage warily. "Don't tell me..."

He grinned back, shifting gears. "We are so going to beat him."

Fifteen terrifying minutes later, we pulled into Mr. Firay's apartment's parking lot. Sage pulled into a parking spot and shut off the car. I stayed seated for a few moments, one hand still gripping the cup holder, the other holding onto the dash.

"That... was scary," I finally said, turning to look at Sage with wide eyes. "You drive like a maniac! I'm pretty sure we were over the speed limit the whole time!"

"I took back streets," Sage responded with a wave on the hand.

"It's still dangerous!"

"We are fine!"

My door suddenly opened and I turned to see Mr. Firay frowning down at us.

"Daphne, what's wrong?"

"I am never driving with Sage again," I told him, swinging my legs out the door so I could get out.

Mr. Firay chuckled, moving out of the way. I heard Sage sigh deeply behind me.

"How did you get here so fast?" he huffed, crossing his arms. "I swear you left after us."

Mr. Firay smirked. "Who used to win all the street races?"

"Street races?" I gasped, looking between the two.

"Forget it, let's go inside and get started," Mr. Firay said, brushing me off. "I have somewhere to go at five."

The three of us trooped inside, and then up the stairs to Mr. Firay's apartment. He took out his key and unlocked the door, gesturing us inside first. I went in eagerly. It was my third time being to his apartment, but it was still just as exciting.

"Daphne, make me some coffee," he ordered.

I turned to him with a skeptical look. "This is your house."

He raised an eyebrow. "And?"

I scowled at him for a moment, but went to his kitchen anyway. I didn't even know where the coffee was!

"Stupid teacher," I muttered, opening the pantry and locating the can of coffee.

Five minutes later, I returned to the living room with three steaming mugs of coffee. I did my best to keep my smirk hidden as I placed Mr. Firay's cup in front of him. I added an extra little surprise into his. I went back into the kitchen to grab the container of half and half I found in his fridge and the sugar jar.

I watched as Mr. Firay poured unnecessary amounts of sugar and half and half into his cup. A habit I know found sort of cute. I blushed, looking down at my own cup and putting a few carefully measured spoonfuls of sugar. When I looked back up, Mr. Firay was raising his cup to his mouth.

I couldn't help the smirk from spreading to my face as the cup pressed against his lips. He took a long drink, and to my surprise and disappointment, didn't even make a face. He let out a sigh and placed the cup back on the ground. When he caught me staring he raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

I frowned. "Nothing..."

Surely the tobacco sauce and salt I added to his cup would have made some difference. Or was he just sucking it up because he didn't want to let me know he'd been tricked?

Suddenly there was a gagging to my right and I looked to see Sage looking at his cup in disgust. He looked at me, his eyes narrowing.

"Just because I drove fast in the car doesn't mean you have to poison me!"

I gaped at him, trying not to laugh, but at the same time feeling bad. "I'm sorry! I don't know."

"Ugh," he groaned, covering his mouth. "I think I'm going to be sick... I need some water to wash this taste away."

He stood up and went into the kitchen. I heard the running of water and the clink of a glass being taken from the cupboard. I looked at Mr. Firay who was innocently sipping his coffee. I sighed inwardly and picked up my own, taking a sip.

My eyes widened and I gagged instantly, doing my best to swallow the bilge in my mouth. Mr. Firay looked at me curiously, a smirk slipping onto his face. I blushed and looked away.

How he had managed to slip whatever he did into my drink- it tasted like mustard; _oh, _har, har, har- I didn't know, but I wasn't going to let him have the glory of tricking me. I wouldn't let him know.

Five seconds later, my resolve dissolved and I rushed to the kitchen, grabbing Sage's water out of his hand and quickly taking a sip, gargling and spitting it out.

"You don't screw with the master," I heard Mr. Firay's voice float into the kitchen.

I lowered my head in defeat. He'd gotten me.

"Right, so show me how to make a fist," Mr. Firay said, when we were all settled with fresh cups of coffee ten minutes later.

I frowned, holding out my hand. I clenched my fist, tucking my thumb between my middle finger and pointer finger. Sage snorted, bowing his head in silent laughter. I frowned at him.

"What?"

"Daphne... how did you manage to punch those guys before with a fist like that?" Mr. Firay said with a sigh.

"This is how I was taught back in Ferryport Landing!"

Neither men seemed to catch that; Sage was busy laughing and Mr. Firay was shaking his head. "Come here." Mr. Firay beckoned me with his finger.

I moved myself over to the other side of the couch, where Mr. Firay grabbed my hand, unclenching it. I blushed slightly at the contact, but tried to shake it away quickly. Mr. Firay folded my fingers into a fist again, and then placed my thumb over my over my pointer and middle fingers.

"If you tuck your thumb, it will be easily broken," Mr. Firay informed me. "Even if it's someone like you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Punch me," Mr. Firay said.

"What?"

"Punch me," he repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Surely you know what that means."

"I do, but why?" I responded, looking at him crazily.

"I want to see how hard you can punch. Do it, you won't hurt me, I promise."

He stood up and then forcefully pulled me to my feet. I scowled at him for a moment, yanking my arm out of his grasp.

"Well, you asked for it."

Using as much force I could I brought back my arm and then brought it forward, aiming to land a forceful hit on his chest. Before my eyes could catch what was happening, Mr. Firay blocked my fist with his hand in ease. I blinked as he curled his hand around my fist.

"Well, you have some force," he commented, releasing my fist.

I pulled my hand back and frowned at him. "Teaching me how to fight won't help me win against whoever I'm fighting if I lack some skill." I hadn't taken classes with Mrs. White for…_years _now. And there weren't any real good classes that I found in New York. Sue me for not practicing!

Mr. Firay looked at me in surprise for a second, and then his face turned serious. "Daphne, I'm teaching you how to defend yourself and be able to make a getaway. I don't want you even trying to take on anyone, that's too dangerous. If you aren't able to contact me, call Sage, or even the police if you have to."

"Whoa, no, I can't get involved with the police. My mom will flip!"

"It's better that than you dead," Mr. Firay responded in a hard voice.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "So what are your tips for running away then?"

Mr. Firay's face softened and he nodded his head. "There's a few key things to know if they try to attack you while fleeing- which they undoubtedly will."

Sage rolled his eyes and propped his feet up on the coffee table. "I still say we just let her fight them."

"I'd be killed," I stated, frowning. "I don't even want to delude myself into thinking I could take on a gangster..."

Mr. Firay nodded, sending a glare at Sage. "The most important thing is keeping you safe."

"How much do you know about fighting?" Sage cut in, looking at me curiously.

" I've watched a few movies," I responded, furrowing my eyebrow. "I know right hooks, left hooks, uppercuts..."

Sage looked impressed. "Anything else?"

Oh! How could this have possibly slipped my mind? "I took Karate for awhile when I was younger. It was a self-defense class with Snow White back in Ferryport Landing. Um, I took the classes when I was probably around the age of seven, up until I moved here.."

Sage looked at me in surprise then to Mr. Firay. "Why didn't you just say that in the first place!"

I stared at him in confusion. "What difference does it make? I haven't practiced it in _years! _That won't help me now!"

"The point is that you know some things, which means we only have to give you some advice the deals with fleeing or defending!"

Mr. Firay cleared his throat. "Speaking of which, may I get started now?"

Sage grinned and nodded. "Aye, aye, sir."

"Let's start with punching. If you feel the need that you have to fight back, and by have to, I mean have to," Mr. Firay started, putting emphasis on his words, "aim for the nose and lips."

I stared at him, blanking in surprise. "What? Why? The head is where it'd hurt-"

"You could easily break the smaller bones in your hand or collapse your knuckle," Mr. Firay explained. "Especially if you're a girl. I don't know how Snow White taught you, but the nose _is_ the best spot. The temples, then the throat, and moving lower aim for the kidneys."

I raised my hand like we were in school. Mr. Firay's expression became amused for a moment and he smirked.

"Yes, Ms. Grimm?"

"What do I do if my hands are... unable to be used?" I said, wording my sentence awkwardly. "Like if they were holding my arms or something."

"Kick," Sage responded simply. "You're a girl. It should be in your nature to kick violently if some man has his hands on you when it's not wanted."

Mr. Firay nodded. "Kicking is correct. However, don't aim for the head."

"Why not?"

"They may be aiming to kill you, but I highly doubt you want a murder on your hands."

My eyes widened slightly, and I shook my head. "No..."

"Good because killing someone never leads to good things, right Matt?" Sage added, nudging Mr. Firay in the shoulder.

Mr. Firay shot him a glare before rolling his eyes. "Everyone knows that."

I frowned. "Yeah..."

"If you fall on the ground, roll," Mr. Firay said, turning his attention back to me again. "Trust me when I say, they will not hesitate to kick you will you're down... or stomp on you."

I winced at the mental image in my head. "Will do..."

A phone ringing suddenly pierced the silence and Mr. Firay stood up abruptly. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and looked at the caller ID.

"I'll be right back," he muttered, glaring at the phone before turning and going out into the hall way.

Sage and I exchanged curious looks, but I shrugged it off. Mr. Firay always seemed to be chatting to someone on the phone. And he usually didn't end the call in a good mood. Sage patted my shoulder.

"I don't know about you, but I think Matt should just stick to teaching Biology. His... quote-unquote teaching about fighting isn't very good in my opinion."

"Eh," I muttered not in agreement, but not in disagreement either.

"Tell you what, I'll teach you some things on my own," Sage offered. "So you'll be better prepared. But you can't tell Matt."

"Why not?"

Sage smiled slightly. "I don't think he'd be happy about it. He's such a mother hen when it comes to you. I don't think I've seen Matt this worried over anything."

I looked down at my lap. "Like a mother worries over her children, huh..."

Sage abruptly started laughing, and ruffled my hair. "No. A man worrying for someone he cares about."

I blushed and shook my head. "Not in that way!"

Sage smirked. "Oh, so you like him 'in that way'?"

"I don't love him!"

"Whoever said I was talking about love?" Sage responded, his smirk growing wider. "This is just too cute. You guys will make a great couple!"

I blushed harder and glared at him. "It's obvious he doesn't like me like that."

"I think he does."

"You're stupid then," I told him.

I did not want to get my hopes up. And after all, I was still a high school girl while he was an adult.

"You don't know him like I do," Sage responded. "I think you'd be good for him... especially because of how his life has been like up until now."

I looked back up at Sage, who was frowning now. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that-"

The door opened and before I realized what was happening, Sage pulled me into a deep hug. I blushed, trying to get away.

"What are you doing?"

"Making him jealous."

I heard footsteps across the floor, and then they stopped behind me. I swallowed nervously, trying to slide my way out of Sage's grasp.

"I was gone not even five minutes, and you throw yourself on here?" Mr. Firay asked, grabbing my shoulders and forcibly yanking me away from Sage.

I stumbled and fell back into his chest, blushing once again. Mr. Firay steadied me before letting me go. I looked up at him and he threw a disapproving look to Sage.

"Can I trust you to take her home? Or will you attack her in the car?"

"I might," Sage said with a smirk on his face.

"I don't have time for this," Mr. Firay snapped, glaring at the man. "Yes or no."

Sage sighed. "Yes. What's got you all hyped up? A date?"

Mr. Firay smirked. "Something along those lines..."

Sage blanked and I froze.

Mr. Firay had a date?

**A/N. **Oh my gosh! I did it! WHOOHOO! Screw Johnny Tremain –making you guys happy is awesome! ^^ So yeah! Whatever I said in my A/N. above should be remembered down here.

Also! Thanks again for getting me into another round of "TBSGS2011" by Elli! Keep the votes coming and the 5-day-update can change to 6-day-update. ^^

Chaoo!

~Lara


	24. Chapter 24:

**A/N**. Hi, hi! I've brought you a gift today: Chapter 24! I see some of you are steamed up; 'WHAT? Mr. FIRAY SHOULD BE DATING DAPHNE, YOU OLIVE OF AN AUTHOR!'. :D Well, it's a pleasure to be an author!

**Oh, and turns out, FF didn't 'censor' for the day like I thought it would...but Wiki did! YES! WIKI JOINED THE PROTEST! If you want to actually understand what I've been talking about these past few days, tomorrow when Wiki opens up, type in 'SOPA' or 'PIPA' and they'll talk all about it. Their reasons for passing that law seem reasonable...but it's _NOT._**

Anyways, guys! _Guess what? _I found out a way to fix my slip ups of 'Mr. Heywood' and 'Jeremy' and whatnot! ^^ There's this little button in the Doc.x x Manager and it's called the 'Find' button. I click on the 'Replace' Tab, and I write (ex.) 'Mr. Heywood' in the first box, then (ex.) 'Mr. Firay' in the second, and click 'Replace All' and my slip ups are gone! Yaya! :D But I still have to proof read it incase I see words that I didn't enter in the Replace box thing. :D So I don't have to worry about that anymore...

Anyways, (grr, I say that too much) here's the chapter which I hope you thoroughly enjoy!

**Chapter 24: These Are Signs Of...**

"Daphne. Daphne? Daphne!"

Something hit the top of my head and I jumped, coming out of my daze. I looked to my right to see Wendell frowning at me.

"I've been calling your name for the past minute!"

"Sorry," I responded, stretching.

"Can I have your extra pizza sticks?"

A grin made its way onto my face and I shook my head, sliding my lunch tray over to Wendell. "You wanted my attention just to ask me that? Usually you just take them."

"Can't I be a gentleman once in awhile?"

Wendell grinned at me, and I rolled my eyes back. The small scar on his head from when the bat hit him caught my attention. He caught me looking and frowned.

"It doesn't hurt," he informed me, running a finger over it. "It just is sort of ruining my good looks."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, okay."

Silence fell between us again and I moodily picked through my trail mix. I had already picked out the M&Ms and the only things left were all the nuts and raisins. Both food items weren't as delicious as chocolate in my opinion.

I absently wondered if Mr. Firay liked peanuts. Or if he liked chocolate... I frowned slightly after a moment. I didn't actually know anything about him, besides his past as a gang member, and I didn't even know all that. He was keeping something from me. But he never shared what he liked, or disliked. He never told me what he likes to do, or where he came from...

He probably wouldn't tell me who he went on a date with.

I huffed, crushing a peanut between my fingers. Who did Mr. Firay know that was a girl besides the faculty and students here? And more importantly, what did he see in her? Mr. Firay had never mentioned a girl before! And Sage didn't even know who he was dating.

I wanted to know who she was, but at the same time I didn't. What if she was a beautiful woman who I couldn't compete against? It was possible. Mr. Firay was very handsome...

I heaved a heavy sigh, slumping onto the table. Love was a very unfair thing.

Suddenly I was forced into a sitting position and I looked around in shock and my eyes landed on Wendell's hard face. He looked at me accusingly and crossed his arms.

"Daphne Grimm. You tell me what's wrong with you this instant!"

"Huh?" I looked at him in surprise. "What are you talking about?"

"You've sighed at least fifty times since lunch started, _amiga. _These are signs of sad thoughts and misery," a new voice from my left pointed out.

I jumped again, turning to my left to see Ariana watching me with concerned eyes. "When did you get here?"

"I've been here the whole time, D," she told me, raising an eyebrow. "You didn't notice me?"

"Oh... no."

"Because she's too busy being in the dumps about something she won't share with us," Wendell interjected, frowning at me.

"Tell us what's wrong," Ariana prompted. "Obviously there's something going on."

I shook my head. "Nothing's going on."

Wendell and Ariana gave me skeptical looks.

"Really," I assured.

"Not even the slightest?"

"Fine. I didn't study for the math test," I lied. "All the formulas got to me and I said screw it, I can afford to fail. So it's not that big of a deal. And even if it was-"

"Daphne, no mendaciousness."

"No what?"

Wendell rolled his eyes. "And I thought you had your own language..."

"Listen, sometimes there are problems I have that you wouldn't want to hear about, Wendell. And it just so happens that this one happens to be about a man you don't really like."

Wendell's eyes widened in shock. "Oh, Mr. Fi-"

I shot him a warning glare.

"F-fe fi fo fum! I smell pizza sticks," he said, stuffing his face with the pizza.

I shook my head, and caught Ariana grinning widely at me. I watched her carefully.

"It's about Mr. Firay isn't it?" she said, looking smug.

"What? No!" I responded too quickly, glaring at Wendell, who was still eating.

Ariana grinned wider, if that was possible. "Oh, I think it is." She turned to Wendell. "Don't you think so too, Wendell?"

They stared at each other for a minute. Wendell held up his side for a minute, but I could see him start to falter under Ariana's intimidating gaze.

"Ah... I think so too."

"Wendell!"

"C'mon, just tell us," Ariana urged.

"Where's Josh?" I asked, trying to change the subject. "And Willow? And Colin?"

"Away," Ariana responded quickly, she put on a pouting face. "Daphne, just say it. We won't judge you. I'm your best friend, you can tell me. Besides I already know how you feel about him."

Wendell coughed quietly and I shot him another glare.

He looked back sheepishly. "It's Ariana... you know how she is. She just doesn't bugger off until you tell her. She just continues to harass you until you just can't take it anymore! She's so conniving."

"But it was a secret Wendell!" I snapped back, ignoring his excuses.

"So it is true!" Ariana gasped, staring at me with wide eyes. "I didn't believe it when Wendell told me! But I knew you'd fall for him! I felt the chemistry. I knew he'd like you too."

I let out an exasperated sigh. "Don't get ahead of yourself, Ariana..."

She stared at me curiously. "What do you mean?"

"Just because I like him-"

"Love him," Wendell interjected.

I sent him a harsh glare. "Doesn't mean anything will happen... besides, he's got a date."

Ariana's eyes widened more. Even Wendell looked surprise.

"So that's your problem," he commented, frowning slightly.

I glared at him, letting out a '_hmph_'. He snickered at me.

"Aw, is Daphne jealous?"

"I'm not jealous," I snapped at him.

"You're in denial," Ariana interjected, patting my shoulder.

"I'm not!"

She raised her eyebrows. "Sounds like denial to me."

"But I'm not!" I argued, clenching my fist. "I'm not jealous. Why would I be jealous? He can date any woman he wants. I'm not stopping him. I can't stop him, it's not like we are a thing. He's probably dating a model."

Wendell watched me with an amused expression. Ariana started laughing.

"Oh, Daphne, have more confidence in yourself," Ariana said, patting my back. "You're not that ugly."

"I never said I thought I was ugly!"

Ariana laughed. "I'm kidding. But, it was a little surprising that you told Wendell and not me. I mean, we are best friends, and both girls right?"

I groaned inwardly. Ariana always played the guilt game with me when I hid something from her. She pouted at me slightly. I gave Wendell a hard look.

"Wendell wasn't supposed to know either," I told her, trying to make her feel better.

"Well how did he know then?"

"He... eh..." I trailed off, trying to think of an excuse. Saying, "Oh, hey basically blackmailed me," wouldn't work so well.

"I read her diary," Wendell said, sounding unsure.

Ariana snickered. "Should have guessed. I found Daphne's diary in sixth grade once. I thought I told her to hide it better..."

"Oops," I responded with a forced laugh.

I rolled my eyes at Wendell. He couldn't have thought of a better excuse, could he? I hadn't written in a diary _since_ sixth grade!...

Okay, maybe 8th. My Grimm journal counts as a diary, doesn't it?

Ariana smirked smugly. "Well. I knew it. But you guys wouldn't be keeping any other secrets from me, would you?"

Wendell and my eyes met once more, looking wary. I turned back to Ariana, shaking my head.

"No..."

It was for her own good she didn't know about the whole gang thing. I didn't want to put her in danger, even if that meant I had to lie to her. But I still felt guilty.

"That reminds me! Daphne, are you going on the beach trip on Saturday?" Ariana asked suddenly, looking excited. "I am!"

I nodded. "Yeah, I got the papers signed last night. I'm going to give them to Mr. Firay next period."

"It's too bad he's not coming, huh," Ariana responded with a sigh. "You guys could have fun," she added with a wink.

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Now I would have to put up with Ariana's teasing. I shot Wendell another glare, and he sent me an apologetic look.

"Are you going, Wendell?" Ariana asked, oblivious to my glare to him.

Wendell turned to her and shook his head. "I have to work."

"You work?" I questioned, looking surprised.

Wendell smirked. "Now I do. I got a part time job at the super market downtown."

"Lucky," Ariana said, frowning. "I need a job."

"Me too," I agreed.

"I'd say I'd hook you up, but they aren't looking for any more help," Wendell explained with a shrug.

"Speaking of down town, did you hear they found three guys knocked out at the towing place?" Ariana started, lowering her voice. "It seems like there was a fight there."

I froze, locking gazes with Wendell once more.

"Um, no, where'd you hear that?" I asked, forcing myself to sound calm.

"It was on the news," Ariana responded. "But isn't it weird? There haven't been any fights in our town in so long... well ones bad enough to make the news."

"Maybe it wasn't a fight," Wendell suggested. "Maybe they were just passed out from drinking too much."

"But they were injured," Ariana said. "And one had a bat. Definitely a fight."

I forced out a laugh. "Well, it doesn't involve us."

"True," Ariana responded with a nod.

The bell rang, signaling lunch was over. I sighed in relief. I didn't want Ariana to get suspicious. However my sigh of relief turned into a groan. I still hadn't brought my tray up.

"Better hurry and bring your tray up so you aren't late for home ec," Wendell taunted before following Ariana out of the cafeteria.

"Shoot!" I muttered, grabbing my tray and heading towards the front of the cafeteria.

I carefully maneuvered myself through the crowds of people, making sure to not have my tray bump into anyone. I made it to the trash can safely, but when I was about to dump my food, someone knocked into my hand, making me drop the tray. I groaned, and turned to glare at the person.

Mr. Firay stared back, looking amused.

"Daphne... sorry about that," he apologized, trying to hide a grin.

My eyes opened wider and I immediately looked down at the ground, my face heating up slightly. He was the one person I did not want to see right now. Granted I was about to see him in class, but that wouldn't have been just the two of us.

He appeared in my vision again, grabbing my lunch tray. I watched as he brought it to the lunch lady. They chatted for a moment, and then Mr. Firay came back over to me.

"So did Sage try anything in the car last night?"

I looked up at Mr. Firay in surprise. "What? No."

Mr. Firay stared at me for a moment, then nodded. "Good."

I frowned back. "Why does it matter, even if he had? Maybe he did, I could be lying to you."

Mr. Firay looked at me in amusement. "Daphne, you wouldn't lie to me."

"I wouldn't be so sure."

He sighed, ruffling my hair. I pulled away with a frown.

"If you're jealous, just say it."

"What?" I responded, my face turning red. "I'm not-"

"I mean, any girl would be jealous if I went on a date that wasn't with them, right?" he continued, smirking.

I glowered at him, pushing his hand off my head. "You are so narcissistic."

Mr. Firay chuckled. "I was kidding, Daphne."

I gave him a blank look and he sighed.

"Anyway, you don't have to stay after today," he told me, rubbing his head.

"Eh? Why not?" I asked, feeling a little disappointed.

Mr. Firay smirked. "I've got to go out..."

"Another date?" I responded, my heart beating faster.

"If you mean like last night's date, then yes."

Mr. Firay watched me carefully. I struggled to keep my face straight. I wouldn't let him know I was jealous. Why was he even telling me that? He could have just said he was busy! I clenched my fist. Two could play at this game.

I smiled, making Mr. Firay raise an eyebrow.

"How perfect does that work? Sage asked if he could take me out after school today. I told him, "No." since I had to help you, but now I don't. I'll just give him a call."

Mr. Firay's eyes widened in surprise, but they quickly returned to their normal state. A frown slipped onto his face.

"How do you have Sage's number?"

"He gave it to me," I responded simply.

"Oh really?" Mr. Firay said, narrowing his eyes.

"Yeah, want me to prove it?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "Prove it."

I pulled out my cell phone and flipped through the contacts until I got to Sage's. I held it up to Mr. Firay. "See?"

He smirked, taking my cell phone out of my hand. "Confiscated. No cell phone use in school, Ms. Grimm."

I stared at him with my mouth open. Was he joking? He had to be joking.

The bell rang and I jumped. Mr. Firay shook his head at me.

"Now you're late."

"Give me my phone!" I demanded, reaching for his hand.

"Nope," he responded simply, putting my phone into his pocket. "You know the rules, Ms. Grimm. You can have it back when your mom comes and gets it from the school."

"You asked me to prove it!"

"I didn't ask you to take out your phone."

I shook my head angrily. "You're unbelievable, you know that?"

Mr. Firay simply shrugged. "Rules are rules. And you're also late... But since I have a _date _after school, I can't give you a detention."

"You can't give me one in the first place," I pointed out, putting my hands on my hips. "Remember what you told me?"

"Remember Wendell punching me in the face?"

I glared at him for a few moments. He simpered back, looking highly amused. I huffed angrily and turned around, stalking away from him.

"Where are you going?" he called.

I turned around, narrowing my eyes. "To class."

For once, I was glad there were empty seats in the black of the classroom. I went to the one near Wendell and sat down, scowling. Mr. Firay entered the room a few seconds later looking pleased with himself.

"Sorry I'm late," he apologized to the class.

He went straight into a lecture about parfaits. I glared moodily at him the entire time, and every time he looked at me, he'd smirk in amusement. I clenched my fist.

Why would he take my cell phone away? I knew he was a jerk, but that was a total donkey move. Did I do something to upset him? Or did he just like teasing me? I scowled when I realized it was probably the latter. Either that or he didn't want me to contact Sage...

My eyes widened in realization. That could be it! That was why he took my cell phone. He didn't want me to get in touch with Sage. But what did that mean? I let out a quick rush of air. Were these signs of what I thought? Was...

Was Mr. Firay jealous of Sage?

I smirked to myself, tapping my desk. Two really could play at the jealous game, couldn't they? I sent Mr. Firay a sweet smile when we caught eye contact again. He looked confused and stumbled on his words. I laughed.

This would be fun.

**A/N. **Mwahaha, mwahaha, MWAHAHA! I updated once again! ^^ But this is the last update of the week, unless you'd prefer this to be part of the five day update I promised (that means two more this week). You guys want that? I'll tally up the votes (just say what you want in the reviews) and if most of you want another update, I'll do so tomorrow.

Anyways, thanks again for all your reviews! ^^ Special dedication...(this is from when I updated Monday and got that gigantic load of reviews)

RockstarGurl4444 x2, cutie pie x2, warisha x3 (yes that def. boosted up my ego; **this goes for all of you other reviewers too!**), Cat, Crystal Salamander, Sabrina Grimm, Lara D (hi mee!), ZiaMikal x2, killerbunnies x2, twilightfunatic (oh, we got a SagexDaphne shipper here! Lol, jk), Epiphany on Toast x2, Curlscat (mwahahahaha) x2, yellow.r0se x2, and TheyCallMeRed x3. _As of the moment, that is. ^^_

And thanks again for all the votes in Elli's TBSGS2011! If you haven't, would you take a few minutes to vote? :3 I'd greatly appreciate it! XD

Until tomorrow? Next week? Again, vote in your review if you want the rest of this week to be part of the 5-day-update, or if you want that after Jan. 28.

PEACE!

~Lara


	25. Chapter 25:

**TODAY'S AUTHOR'S NOTE IS A WHOLE PAGE ON WORD. You are allowed to skip, but I guess you only have to read the bold…**

**A/N.** Good morning/afternoon/night! :) Today we start the...

**FIVE DAY** **UPDATE**! Whee! But don't let that stop you from **voting for me in Elli's BSGS2011**! But really, if you have another favorite that tops my story, vote for them! I mean, I'm not forcing you. XD Because everyone really deserves to win -we've all come so far! :)

Umm…so yeah. I know I said vote (by the way three out of the four that voted wanted me to continue last week :3) for when you wanted me to update, but Curlscat just did the following:

Give a good reason why it should be _this_ week (I think another reviewer –the one fourth who wanted me to update this week instead of last- also said this)

Made a bargain with me (Ish :3)

Curlscat said that even though you wait, you get three extra more updates. If I had continued last week, you'd only have gotten two. So that's the good reason. Also, I asked her to nag me for this so I'd never forget:

**If I get into another round (I think this is the last round though, ^.^'), you get an additional six day update!** So it's like five updates one week, then six updates the next week. You see? So, I decided to start my five updates this week. And...if I -possibly- win, in a few weeks (because that's when Elli's going to announce the winner), you will get an additional seven day update. A whole week with an update each day. Yup, no kidding.

Wow, +230 reviews…that's almost as many as how many Facebook friends I have… WOWZA! **Thanks for all the mucho gravy and Pucktastic comments.**

Warisha - Your review for Ch. 23: Whoa, I thought you were going to figure it out. Sadly, no. Lol. When he was in the gang he did not accidentally murder someone while trying to defend himself and that's not why they keep going after him. You were really close though! Well, sort of. I can't really explain without giving it away.

Warisha and co. - Your review for Ch. 24: Lololol. Your siblings made me laugh. I don't take any offense at all (suck on that sister of Warisha ;D), and I have no idea what your brother made up. Lol, but even they can't make me stop writing. The only ones who could possibly be able to do that…well, that's a secret! ^^ But anyways, I'm glad your siblings reviewed because now I have a lot of reviews! WHEE!

Also, twilightfunatic has requested that I tone down the Spanish just a bit. So, if Ariana starts to seen non-Hispanic, that's okay.

**Chapter 25: The Hideout**

"Ariana!" I called, running down the hall after her. "A!"

She stopped and turned around, waiting for me to catch up with her. I paused beside her, trying to regain my breath.

"I've run around this whole school looking for you!" I explained, holding my side.

"_Por que,_ why?" she responded, looking slightly amused.

"Want to walk home with me?"

Ariana raised her eyebrow at my request. Well, it sounded more like I begged her rather than asked her.

"Why are you asking, _amiga_?"

"Because lately we haven't been walking home together since I've been getting rides, or you've been getting rides... mostly you," I said, narrowing my eyes accusingly. "Red's always going home with Tom now, and it's too boring to walk home alone."

Ariana smiled sheepishly. "Actually..."

"Ariana!" a new voice called. Ariana looked behind me, a smile spreading on her face.

I turned around and Josh grinned at me.

"Oh," I responded in defeat. "You're going home with him?"

"Him?" Josh responded, sniffing. "I do have a name."

"Sorry, _lo siento_," Ariana responded, bowing her head. "It's our one year and a half anniversary so..."

I waved my hand. "Don't worry. You two go have fun."

Josh grinned, wrapping an arm around Ariana's shoulder. "You can join us if you want, Daphne."

"Nah, I don't want to intrude," I told him.

"You need to get a boyfriend so we can double date," Josh commented, frowning slightly.

Ariana laughed. "Oh, trust me. We couldn't double date with the guy she's got her sights on."

"Ariana!" I warned, glaring.

"Don't worry, I can keep a secret, D."

"I know but..."

"What are you two talking about?" Josh interjected, looking curious.

"Never mind," I said quickly. "You two go have fun... I'm going to go walk home... alone... I could be kidnapped... maybe even killed-"

"Stop being over-dramatic, Daphne," Ariana reprimanded, rolling her eyes. "_Hasta luego_!"

I grinned, shaking my head. "Okay, bye."

I watched as they walked off towards Josh's locker. When they were out of sight I sighed, turning around and walking straight into someone. I winced at the contact of my face and their hard chest.

"The tables have turned," a familiar voice commented. I looked up to see Mr. Firay smirking down at me. "Watch where you're going, Daphne."

I scowled, stepping away from him. "Right."

I turned around and started walking for the back exit of the school. All the other students went out the front where the buses were, and I didn't feel like dealing with the chaos. I heard footsteps behind me that told me Mr. Firay was following me.

"You're not angry about me taking your phone away, are you?" he questioned, falling into step with me.

I ignored him, concentrating on the door so I didn't snap at him. He chuckled beside me.

"Or maybe you're jealous of my date again?"

I swallowed, willing myself not to talk. I couldn't let him know I was the least bit jealous, otherwise he'd mock me. Or figure out I liked him.

The thought passed through my head and I almost froze in surprise. Well I did freeze for a split second, but I forced myself to keep walking. I pushed open the doors that led outside to the parking lot.

What if Mr. Firay did figure out I liked him? Would he ignore me? Would I be scolded? Would I get in trouble? Or maybe he would tell me he liked me too...

I shook my head. Impossible.

"Daphne!"

I heard a horn blare, and a rough grip on my arm made me stumbled backwards, back into Mr. Firay's chest again. I looked at him in surprise; he stared down at me, his eyes hard.

"Don't walk out into the road without paying attention! You almost just got hit!"

I looked to my right to see a black car with tinted windows stopped about a foot away from Mr. Firay and myself. The car door opened and, to my surprise, someone familiar stepped out of it.

"Sage?" I gasped in disbelief.

"Daphne, Matt," he greeted with a grin.

"What are you doing here?" Mr. Firay asked, a frown slipping onto his face.

"I've come to pick up Daphne."

Mr. Firay glanced at me, and I smiled smugly back at him.

"How..." Mr. Firay trailed off, his eyes narrowing.

I shrugged. "I don't know. You took my phone away so I couldn't call him."

"That's why you weren't answering my texts," Sage commented with a frown.

I nodded, hooking a thumb towards Mr. Firay. "He tricked me and took it away."

"That's not very nice, Matt," Sage commented, frowning at Mr. Firay.

Mr. Firay scowled slightly. Sage shrugged and gestured me towards his car with a nod of his head. I nodded back, walking away from Mr. Firay and going to stand by Sage.

"Where are you going?" Mr. Firay asked.

"Some place," Sage responded vaguely.

"Have fun on your date," I added, doing my best to keep a straight face.

I walked around the car and got into the passenger's side of the car and got in. Sage climbed into the driver's side. Mr. Firay was hovering beside his window, frowning. Sage rolled down his window slightly.

"Seriously. Where are you guys going?" Mr. Firay asked.

"On a date," Sage responded, a grin spreading on his face "See ya later, Matt!"

Mr. Firay opened his mouth to respond, but Sage quickly rolled up his window, cutting him off. I turned my head so Mr. Firay couldn't see me snickering. Sage pressed on the gas pedal, and we left Mr. Firay standing in the middle of the road with a scowl on his face.

I started laughing. "That was great, Sage!"

Sage smiled, keeping his eyes on the road. "I only think it's fair. After all, he's trying to make you jealous, so two can play at that."

I sighed. "Even though you say that, and I want to, Mr. Firay would never be jealous."

"I wouldn't so sure of that."

"Eh?"

"Well he took your cell phone away, right? Matt is an ex-gangster. Do you seriously think he enforces the school rules on people? And isn't he one of the student body's favorite teacher?"

"Well no, but..."

"Why did you even have your cell phone out?"

"He wanted me to prove I had your number," I responded, frowning. "He tricked me though. That's when he took it."

Sage started laughing. I scowled at him.

"It's not funny. I need my phone and my mom works all day."

"Daphne, did you ever think the reason he took your phone was because he didn't want you to contact me?"

"Yeah, but that's impossible."

"Why do you think that?"

"Because he's a man... and I'm just a high school girl."

"That wouldn't stop me," Sage pointed out, giving me a side-long glance.

"But you said-"

"The point I'm trying to make," he started, cutting me off, "is that you should have a little bit of confidence in yourself."

"But he's got a date," I muttered, looking out the window.

"Date, Daphne. That doesn't mean girlfriend. You and I are out on a date, aren't we? And I'm not your boyfriend... unless you want me to be." He let an impish grin grow on his face.

I smiled, shaking my head. "You're right... they're just on a date."

"You can always steal him back."

"I never said I liked him," I pointed out, turning to look at Sage.

"You didn't have to. It's obvious."

I blushed, quickly looking out the window again. "Is it really?"

"To everyone who has seen you interact outside of school, then yes. Well except to you and Matt, I guess."

I sighed. "There's no way he could like me."

Sage smirked. "If you ever get the chance, look at his cell phone."

"Huh?"

Sage shrugged, focusing all his attention on the road again. I watched as we passed the downtown area, and soon the outskirts of town. I frowned slightly, turning back to Sage.

"Where are we going?"

"It's a secret," he responded in a teasing tone.

I frowned, but let it go. I watched out the window as we pulled onto a dirt road that led into the forest. The deeper we drove into it, the denser it became. I glanced at Sage nervously.

"You're not bringing me out here to kill me, are you?"

Sage laughed and shook his head. "No, I'm going to show you something you might appreciate."

"All the way out here?"

"Look."

I looked out the windshield and my eyes landed on a huge building. I could tell it was abandoned; the paint was peeling, the windows were broken, the lawn was overgrown, and part of the roof had collapsed.

"Oh joy. A rape hut," I said sarcastically.

Sage snorted. "A what? What the hell is that? But no, it's not 'a rape hut'. This is Matt's and my old gang's hang out place."

"Really?" I looked at the building with new respect. "What happened?"

"A few years back a storm knocked a tree into the roof, and none of us were carpenters, so we had to ditch it."

"You had Everafters in the gang, didn't you? Couldn't they fix it with magic?"

"Most of their powers were destructive, not repair like. And Matt's power…he didn't use magic, I guess."

I nodded in understanding. "Then...why not just call a carpenter?"

Sage raised an eyebrow. "And exploit our hideout? I think not."

I nodded in understanding. It was kind of exciting to have a secret hide out spot. I wouldn't want anyone to know where mine was if I had one. But it was a sad thing to have to abandon it.

Sage parked the car and I unbuckled myself, getting out quickly. I started across the lawn, eager to look inside.

"Wait up, kiddo!" Sage called after me and I heard his footfalls as he ran to catch up. "It's dangerous in there, so don't wander off alone."

"Dangerous?" I repeated, turning with a frown. "How?"

"Can't you tell? It's falling apart. I haven't been here in a few years, well no one has been here in a few years. Who knows how safe it is?"

"I still want to go inside," I complained. "We drove all the way out here."

Sage looked at me for a moment, and then sighed. "Fine. But if anything happens to you, you tell Matt it's not my fault."

I grinned. "Deal."

With that, I turned around and hurried towards the porch, stepping up the creaky stairs. I tried to the door, and was pleasantly surprised to find it open. I turned around to shoot Sage a grin. He smiled back, making his way slowly up the steps.

I opened the door and a heavy set of mothballs and dust filled my nose and I coughed for a second, trying to adjust myself to the musk. When I did, I entered fully entered the house, only to be enveloped in darkness. The only light came from the door I had just entered from.

"Is there a light switch in here?"

"To your left," Sage responded, coming into view at the door. "But I highly doubt it-"

Light filled the room as I switched on the light switch Sage was talking about. He looked at me in surprise.

"Maybe the electric company didn't notice yet?" I suggested, shrugging.

"Maybe," Sage murmured in agreement.

I surveyed the room in front of me. It was very large, and very bare. The only pieces of furniture in the room were a ratty old couch that was against the far left wall, with a recliner to accompany it, and scattered chairs against the right.

There was a stair case on either side of the room, that led up to a balcony that hovered over the last quarter of the room. It was very grand.

"What was this room used for?"

"Fights," Sage replied simply. "Mock fights. Challenges. Practice."

I stared at him in awe. "You actually fought here?"

"It was our base for a reason, you know," Sage responded, raising an eyebrow. "C'mon, I'll show you something cool."

"Okay."

I followed Sage towards a set of stairs on the left, and he carefully began stepping up them. He took one step at a time, testing each stair with his weight before stepping on it fully. When we finally made it to the stop without incident, he gestured me toward a door directly across the hall.

"This is our hall of fame in a way," he told me, opening the door the room.

I peered in and furrowed my eyes in confusion. "What are all those papers on the floor?"

"What?" Sage looked around me and he let out a little gasp. "What happened here?"

The room was scattered with papers all over the floor. There were also a few miscellaneous items lying around as well. Sage pushed me aside and walked into the room, frowning deeply.

"I wonder who did this," he commented, squatting down and picking up one of the papers.

I walked further into the room and bent down and picked up what looked like a photograph. I turned it over to the front and was staring at a familiar face, only a few years younger.

"Sage," I started, walking over to him. "Is this you?"

Sage stood up, taking the photo out of his hand. He looked at it for a second and grinned. "That's me. Back when I was a junior."

"You were so cute!" I commented, taking the picture back. "I would have totally dated you."

"Hey," he said, sounding offended. "I'm only four years older now."

I ignored him, bending down and picking up another piece of paper. This time it was a news article cutout. I scanned it quickly. There was a picture of a teenager, who was a little bit handsome, on it. In a nutshell, the article was about the teen that had beaten another nearly to death.

"That's Cain," Sage commented, making me jump. "He was arrested though."

"Why is the clipping here?"

"Didn't I tell you? This is our hall of fame. Granted, everything used to be on the wall though... I really wonder who tore it all off."

"Hall of fame? As in..."

"As in if you did well in a fight, you're picture would be up on the wall. On the back it'd say your name, age, opponent, and how long the fight took. You could also get on the wall if you got into the newspapers. There were other ways of getting on it, but I'm not going to explain."

I looked at the picture of Sage when he was a junior. Sure enough, there was writing on the back. "So it took you ten minutes to beat this guy named Tristan?"

Sage nodded. "It wouldn't have taken so long if the bastard hadn't surprised me with a knife."

I let out a startled gasp. "Is that legal?"

Sage gave an exaggerated sigh. "There's nothing illegal or legal in fighting...well, technically speaking."

"But that doesn't seem fair..."

"Nothing's fair in fighting, Daphne," he informed me. "You'd do best to remember that."

"O-okay," I responded, turning my attention back to the papers on the floor.

I continued to look at the backs of photos and random news articles about all the different people who were in the gang. There were quite a few of Sage. All the ones I found with him I put in my pocket to save.

"Found it!"

I jumped at Sage's sudden outburst. "Found what?"

"Look, look!" he said excitedly, shoving a photo into my hands.

The photo was of a very handsome teenager, who was glaring at the camera. I had to resist the urge to snicker.

"Was he always like this?"

Sage laughed. "Matt would never smile for any pictures... however there is one in here."

"He's so cute. I wish I knew him when he was younger," I commented, flipping the photo over. "Eh? Why aren't there any names on it?"

"Because, he was our gang leader."

**A/N.** _Dun dun dun! _Haha, were some of you expecting that? Too bad you have to wait for tomorrow for the next update! But hey-if I had uploaded last week with two more chapters, you would have only one this week! XD

_Actually, you're only supposed to have one because my Duke TIP is Saturday. _*glare glare glare*...

Just kidding! I don't mind if I miss a few on the test (actually, I _know _I'm going to miss at least four or ten in each section) because everyone says it's hard. I'm going to try my best! ^^

Anyways, thanks for your reviews! And an update will come about tomorrow after school! :D

~Lara


	26. Chapter 26:

**A/N. **Holy hartebeest of beleaguer recalcitrant! (That won't make sense at all, by the way, so don't bother trying to decipher it.) DX I'm sorry this took so long. I just found out my spelling bee is tomorrow **(WHO THE HECK TELLS A PERSON THAT WHEN THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE 24 HOURS TO STUDY?),** and got sidetracked playing Charades with my siblings (_that _was funny). So…yeah, also, tomorrow I can't update because I have chorus practice from 3-4, then I have to finish up my homework, do my book report, finish my Mononucleosis Power Point, and study for my Duke TIP. So, sorry. But, I hope this satisfies you…ish. :3 At least, I hope it lasts a day.

_Okay, so my Traffic Stats for my stories say that I had 90 or so visitors, but I only had like, a review or two...What's up with that? XD If you dislike the story, or_ do _like it, comment please! I really do want to know what my reviewers think of this story -even if I don't like it. :)_

By the way, I randomly picked a chapter title that is subject to change. XD

**Chapter 26: Some Math Here, Some Butt-Kicking There…**

"You're kidding me."

Sage laughed, taking the photo from my hands. "Hmm, I believe this was Matt in his freshman year of college..."

I looked at the photo again. "No way, he looks way too young."

Sage raised an eyebrow. "Don't you know? Matt skipped two grades in middle school."

I gasped, my eyes widening. "What? Really?"

Sage nodded. "He's been alive for what? Two thousand years or so? Matt's pretty smart. He graduated at age sixteen -well, _physically_. After that he went straight to college, and managed to graduate with his teaching degree in only three years ."

My mouth was open in shock as I digested this information. Just how smart was Mr. Firay?

"So wait... he was gang leader at age sixteen?"

"Physically eighteen," Sage corrected me.

"Then why doesn't this picture have names?"

"This is why."

I watched as Sage unfolded a piece of paper. He handed it over, and it crinkled in my hand. The edges were yellow from age. I scanned down the paper. It was full with names, and fight durations.

"It can't be..."

"Oh, yes it can. Flip the paper over."

I did Sage commanded, and my eyes met more names. "This is crazy!"

"He is a crazy good fighter," Sage responded. "_And _he's never used magic against someone. Well, I think once, but I doubt it. Some rumor I think. Anyways, he won over one hundred matches within half a year -two hundred by the end of it. The only reason Matt didn't become gang leader as soon as he joined was because he wouldn't accept."

I shook my head in disbelief. "This isn't impossible... it's almost inhuman."

"You've seen Matt fight, right?"

Images of Mr. Firay's one hit knock outs flooded my mind. I nodded my head vigorously.

"There you go."

I frowned at the photo for a few moments. "Okay...so if he joined the gang when he was either a freshman or sophomore-"

"Sophomore," Sage corrected me. "And how'd you know that?"

"He told me," I responded, before returning to my thoughts. "That means he was part of the gang since he was around fourteen... then at seventeen he went to college, and was still part of the gang. At twenty he graduated..."

"Where are you going with this?" Sage commented, sounding confused.

I turned my attention onto him. "Why didn't Mr. Firay start teaching when he was twenty-one? Why wait until a year later? And he didn't quit the gang until this year, when he started teaching... so what did he do in that year between graduating and starting as a teacher?"

Sage suddenly looked uncomfortable. He squatted down and began searching through the papers on the floor again, ignoring my questions and stares. I walked over to him and lowered myself to his level.

"Tell me what Mr. Firay did during that time, Sage."

"It's not my business to tell, I'm afraid," Sage responded quietly. "There's some stuff I can tell you, however, this is not something I feel I should divulge to you. Matt will tell you if he wants you to know."

"Does this have to do with why your old gang wants him dead?" I demanded, my gaze hardening.

"Oh look what I found!" Sage cried excitedly, standing up.

I followed suit, a small scowl on my face. "Don't ignore me, answer my question!"

"Look, Daphne. Isn't Matt so cute when he smiles? This was his graduating year at college."

Sage dangled the photo in front of me. I tried to focus on it, but with the swaying of his hand, he made it impossible. I snatched it from his grasp and held it out in front of me.

A silly grin made its way onto my face as I looked at the picture. Mr. Firay was dressed up in a pair of faded jeans and a black button-up shirt. He was with Sage, and they both grinning at the camera, their arms wrapped around each other.

"Aren't we so cute?" Sage asked with a sigh. "This picture was taking on one of those rare days when Matt would actually smile."

"I feel like I'm looking at a totally different person," I told him, staring at the photo in awe. "I mean, I know Mr. Firay is younger in this picture, but I've never seen him with this expression on."

Sage nodded. "He used to be a lot more carefree before the accident..." Sage trailed off, looking everywhere but at me.

"The accident?" I repeated.

"Aha, I don't know what you're talking about," Sage responded, giving me a crazy look.

"But you-"

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

My head snapped towards the door way and my gaze landed on a man around Mr. Firay's age. He had gelled black hair, and stood at an alarming height. I quickly shot a glance at Sage, who was scowling at the man.

"What are you doing here, Bryant?"

Bryant? The name clicked in my head, but I couldn't remember where I heard it from. I cursed my forgetfulness.

"I could ask you the same question," the tall man named Bryant responded, looking amused. "How dare traitors show their faces around here."

Sage slowly stepped in front of me, his arm going up protectively. "This place hasn't been used for years..."

"Well you're wrong about that, aren't you?" Bryant responded sarcastically.

"Apparently."

A moment of silence passed between the two. Finally Bryant's eyes snapped onto me.

"This wouldn't happen to be the famous girl I've heard so much about, would it?"

"No," Sage responded quickly. "She's my girlfriend."

"Really? She looks exactly like the girl that Dan told me about..."

Dan? Horror washed over me when I realized that was the man I had attacked two times now.

"Well you're wrong," Sage said, glaring at Bryant. "Now if you don't mind, we'll be taking our leave."

"Not so fast."

I stared at Bryant, who smirked slightly.

"Since you are both here, shall we have some fun? I've been meaning to get back to you for ditching the gang to join Firay's side."

Sage tensed, his hands clenching into fists. "I'll fight you, but let Daphne go."

Bryant stayed quiet for a moment before nodding. "Very well."

"What? I'm not leaving you here," I whispered urgently, gripping onto Sage.

"The most important thing is to keep you safe," he whispered back, never taking his eyes of Bryant.

"Shall we escort her outside then?"

Sage nodded. "Let's go."

"I'm not leaving without you," I repeated stubbornly. "Even if you leave me outside, I'm coming back in to get you."

Sage looked at me, an amused expression on his face.

"Now I know why Matt does what he does."

Before I could ask him what he meant by that, he was across the room. He grabbed the surprised Bryant's shirt and yanked him into the room. Sage turned and sent a punch into Bryant's face, which made him stagger backwards.

"Run!" Sage ordered, gesturing me towards him.

I maneuvered myself around the shocked man, and followed Sage out the door. Sage slammed it behind me and began ushering me towards the staircase. He stopped when he noticed two men coming up them towards us.

Sage clicked his tongue. "Daphne, go down the other way. I'll take out these two, and meet you at the front door. No arguing. Go."

I nodded, and took off in a sprint across the balcony. I heard the sound of Sage talking to the two thugs that were coming up the stairs, and then the unmistakable sound of someone being punched. I winced slightly, hoping it wasn't Sage.

I was about ten feet away from the stairs when someone grabbed my hair. I cried out in shock, coming to an immediate halt.

"And where do you think you're going?"

I turned around to glare at Bryant, who let go of my hair. He gripped my forearm tightly with one of his hands instead.

"I don't have time for this," I said, and with that, I brought my fist as hard as I could into his face.

Instead of letting go of me, like I thought he would, his grasp tightened and he looked at me in amusement.

"You must be the girl Dan was talking about; you're feisty," he commented. "But you're still a girl, and that punch was still weak."

I scowled. "Then we do this the old fashioned way."

Bryant stared at me curiously. I brought my knee up as hard as I could into his crotch. This time he let go of me in surprise and I twisted on my heel, fleeing before he got over the shock.

I shook my fist lightly. That had definitely not been a weak punch. And Mr. Firay had even said I had a good punch. Who was this guy? Why was he so tough? I was lucky I managed to surprise him with my knee attack; otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to escape.

I came to the stairs and quickly descended them. On the fourth stair I stepped on, it suddenly broke from under me, and I fell through. I screamed in surprise, as my body plummeted down the rotten step. I frantically grabbed onto the step above me, catching myself before I fell all the way.

I immediately tried pulling myself back up, but almost just as quickly found it to be impossible. I had almost no upper body strength. I struggled for a minute more, trying to force myself up, but only made my arms more tired.

I grunted as I hung in the air, frustrated. I'd definitely break a leg, or ankle, or something, if I just dropped down.

A sudden pressure was applied to my fingers and I cried out in pain.

"You think you can get away after doing that to me? Who do you think you are?"

I couldn't see who it was, but the voice told me it was Bryant. I scowled. Couldn't he stay in pain for at least a minute longer?

"I think it'd be fun to let you fall, so that's exactly what I'm going to do."

I winced as he ground his head into my fingers, making them ache painfully. After a few seconds, I already felt like they were going to break.

"Stop!" I begged, my hands becoming slippery with sweat.

"I can't hear you," he taunted, switching hands.

I hissed in pain, trying to control the shaking off my other abused hand. My arms screamed in protest to the unusual treatment of my muscles. I groaned in frustration.

"You're tough. But you won't be tough when I break your fingers."

I sucked in a breath when he took his foot away. Was he going to stop on them?

"Daphne, let go!" a voice cried from under me.

Without a second thought, I shut my eyes and let go of the staircase. A piece of the stair scratched my cheek as my head went by it. I screamed as I fell through the air for a split second, and then abruptly cut it off when I landed in someone's arms. I opened my eyes to see Sage staring at me.

"Let's go," he demanded, putting me down and grabbing my hand.

He yanked me towards the door, running faster than I could keep up with. He forced me out, and then slammed the door behind him. I was quickly ushered down the stairs and to the car.

"Get in," he demanded.

I didn't hesitate to wrench the car door open and hop in. Sage did the same and stuffed the car keys into the ignition. He started it in one swift movement and peeled out of the drive way. Soon, we were speeding down the dirt road away from the house.

I let out a deep sigh of relief, trying to catch my breath.

"I, for one, am sure glad we didn't have a horror movie scene where the car wouldn't start," I commented, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly.

**A/N. **…Okay, yeah. That doesn't seem like it'll do for a day or two. :/ I will really try to update tomorrow –I promise. But anyways, it's just passed nine, and I still need to go over my Spelling words for a bit. I'll hear from all of you tonight or tomorrow –hopefully.

~Lara


	27. Chapter 27:

**A/N.** ...I wonder what's going on with all of you anon. reviewers...0.o Besides, Cat and Warisha, 'course. But...guys -this is only for the ones that haven't reviewed in awhile:

**The lack of reviews has left me unmotivated to use this week for my five day updates** (thank you Curlscat for helping me put that into words). I have a Duke TIP test on Saturday, and I'm actually using my study time to write and upload these chapters for you. Five days. Five days of updates were supposed to appear this week, but I've decided that **this is my last update of the week**. Next week will be the real five day update. Sorry. :3 And RockstarGurl4444, this is not your fault.

So, here's the last update of the week. But you know what? That means more chapters _next _week! Whee! And actually, if I had uploaded the 29th chapter this week, you'd all be stuck on a really, really big cliffy. :) I think this ending is not as cruel as chapter 29's...

In fact, it's sweet. :D Now you have to read the whole thing to know why I say it's sweet! MWAHAH!

And really, all you have to do is say whether you liked it or not. I don't need to really know _what_ you liked or hated! :) So keep that in mind.

But for those of you who did review -thanks so much for taking time to give me feedback! I felt mucho gravy receiving all of them! :)

_(Anon. Review Replies are at the bottom A/N.)_

**Whoa. I have over 1,009 PM messages in my 'FF Messages' folder containing every single PM I've ever got since I got a FF. That's epic. **Sorry, I just felt like saying that. XD

I'm also going to start a contest like yellow.r0se does:

**Question of the Day: **What age would you want to stay at forever, and why? Best review gets a shout-out next chapter -which is dedicated to them! ^^

In enters a slightly OOC Veronica. I felt like she needed to come into the story at least twice or so. Oh, and this is after the war, so she's not as serious and weary. Like…well, you'll see in the chapter.

**By the way, I miscalculated something for the story. So, pretend Daphne did not come back from winter vacation at the beginning of this story, but from **_**summer**_** vacation. Thanks.**

**ENJOY A LONG CHAPTER!**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 27: Moms Embarrass Us Because They Love Us<strong>

"Are you hungry?"

I glanced at Sage, who was looking at me from the corner of his eye. I shook my head, shifting in my seat. I stifled a yawn, turning to look out the window again. It was night already, and I could barely make out blurred objects as we drove by them.

"It's hard to believe it's almost October, huh."

"I'll say," I responded. "It feels like a year's gone by in such a short amount of time."

"Well a lot has been going on. Isn't your class trip tomorrow?"

"Oh yeah!" I sat up straighter, shock passing my face. "I haven't even packed or asked my mom for money yet!"

"I wish I could go," Sage said with a sigh. "I want to go to the beach while the weather is still okay…"

"To be honest, I don't know why we are going in October since it's been chilly lately, but it's supposed to be warm tomorrow. Why don't you just come down for fun?" I suggested.

"Can't. I've got to watch my sisters," Sage responded, his eyes on the road.

"You have sisters?"

"Yup."

"How old?"

"I have a thirteen year old sister, and an eight year old sister," he told me, smiling slightly. "They're cute. You'll have to meet them sometime."

"Sure," I responded, smiling too now.

We lapsed back into silence as we entered the downtown area. As we passed the grocery store, I vaguely wondered if Wendell was working. I sighed softly. I wanted a job too.

Sage pulled into my driveway and I unbuckled myself, grabbing my backpack from the floor. He turned to me and smirked slightly.

"Get a wipe out of the glove compartment and wipe your face," he suggested. "It's bloody from where you got cut."

I sucked in a quick breath. Good thing Sage had caught that, because I wouldn't have remembered. I quickly opened the glove compartment fished around until I grabbed a wipe. I tore open the package and pulled down the visor. To my dismay, there was no mirror.

"Let me do it," Sage offered.

I nodded and handed him the wipe. He grabbed my head and turned it towards him, and gently began to wipe of my cheek. I hissed slightly.

"Why does it hurt?"

"It's got disinfectant," he responded, wiping my cheek a little more roughly now. "My sisters fall down a lot, so I have these things handy."

"Oh," I responded, wincing as my cheek throbbed.

When he was done, Sage chucked the dirty wipe into the back seat and turned to me once more. "Well it's been an interesting day," he commented. "Will Matt being hearing about this?"

"No way," I responded quickly, shaking my head. "I think he might kill me if he found out I got involved with gangsters again… especially if it's the leader."

Sage chuckled. "Good point. Have a good night, kiddo. Have fun at the beach tomorrow too."

"I'll try," I responded with a small smile. "Tell your sisters I said hi."

"Sure."

I climbed out of the car and shut the door behind me. I waved to Sage before heading towards the house. I could barely make out anything in front of me due to the darkness. Had Sage and I really been gone that long?

Out of habit, I tested the door handle while reaching for my key with my other hand. I blinked in shock when I found the door open. I pushed it open slowly, frowning. Was my mom home early?

I walked in and the scent of coffee filled the air. I inhaled, following the smell towards the kitchen. Yep, definitely my mom. I yawned, pushing open the kitchen door.

"Mom, why are you home early?"

"Mom?" a masculine voice responded sounding amused.

My eyes snapped open and I came face-to-face with Mr. Firay. He raised an eyebrow as I felt my face begin to heat up. With my eyes wide, I looked past him to see Red and my mom sitting at the kitchen table, sipping a cup of coffee.

Red smiled slightly at me, but I was focused on my mom. She watched me for a moment, and then stood up. I watched her warily as she came to a stop right in front of me. I braced myself, preparing for the worst.

"Welcome home!" she cried, throwing me into a big hug. "How was school? Was everyone nice to you? I hope so! I don't want to have to make any calls to the principal!"

Yep. My mom was a doting mother.

Before she and my dad were kidnapped, she was like this. Back in Ferryport Landing, my mom was pretty serious and I didn't see her smile so much. But now we're back in New York, and you can see where I get my bubbly traits from.

I rolled my eyes, giving my mom a short squeeze before trying to squirm out of her grasp. "Today was great, mom."

"And your date? How come I've never met this man before?" she continued, beginning to frown. "How old is he?"

I shot Mr. Firay a glare. He was biting his lip, trying not to laugh. That only made me more irritated.

"Mom, why is my teacher here?" I asked, trying to change the topic. Red looked at me with a 'you-better-tell-me-about-your-date' look.

Then, she fled the room saying, "Call me for dinner!"

I then turned to my mom, asking the same question. "So...why is he here?"

She grinned, pulling me over to Mr. Firay. By now he had his laughter under control and he was smiling pleasantly at my mom.

"We ran into each other at the grocery store," he explained, a smirk on his face.

"Literally," my mom interjected. "And then I found out he was actually Mustardseed, _and _that he was your teacher, so I invited him here to have dinner. He gotten so tall and handsome, how come you haven't told me you guys met –let alone be student and teacher, Daphne?"

"She's never mentioned me?" Mr. Firay asked, frowning slightly.

"When we have time together, mom, I'd rather not talk about school," I told her. "Since you're so busy all the time, it just never came up."

My mom nodded. "I see." She turned to Mr. Firay. "Work keeps me busy so I'm almost never home."

Mr. Firay nodded his head understandingly. "I'm sure being a wonderful mother like yourself with a… teenage daughter must be hard."

I scowled at Mr. Firay for a second. I knew he was going to say something offensive about me before he corrected himself. He smirked back. My mom was oblivious to the exchange completely.

"Well, shall I get supper started then?" she asked, looking between Mr. Firay and myself.

"You won't," I told her, an amused smirk slipping on my face. "Face it, mom, you can't cook at all."

My mom blushed, looking down in embarrassment. "I could still try…"

"I can cook something," Matt offered. "Believe it or not, I'm a good cook."

My mom turned to him with a grin on her face. "Really?"

"Really."

"Well, it's settled then. Daphne, would you help him?"

"Uhh…"

"Good!" my mom said with a smile, putting a hand on my back. "With Henry and Basil still in New Jersey, and Sabrina and Puck living together, Mustardseed will make great company! I'm sure the two of you can figure out something good. There are steaks in the fridge. If we don't cook them soon, they might go bad. There's also onions in there too, and some potatoes. It could make a good dinner—"

"Mom," I started, cutting her off, "if you want a steak dinner, you just have to ask."

She blushed again, laughing sheepishly. "Right, sorry."

"No worries, I can make a great steak," Mr. Firay responded, a charming smile on his face.

I rolled my eyes. Was he trying to flirt with my mom? That was gross!

"Great!" my mom responded enthusiastically. "Now if you'll excuse me, I think I'll take this time to make a few business calls…"

My mom smiled at Matt again and ruffled my hair before leaving the room. I frowned, trying to smooth my hair out. Mr. Firay watched me with an amused look. I turned my frown onto him.

"What?"

"I didn't know your mom was a doting parent," he commented.

I shrugged. "That's how she was before she and Dad were kidnapped and all that."

"You can sit in that chair right there," Mr. Firay pointed to one of the kitchen chairs, "and let me do the cooking. It seems like you had a rough day."

"Huh?" I responded, raising an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

Mr. Firay gave me a flat look. I returned it with my own confused one. He started walking towards me, and I stood my ground. He stopped about a foot away and raised his hand up to my face.

I jumped slightly when I felt his hand on my cheek. I looked up at him, and his piercing gaze made my face heat up.

"There's a cut on your cheek," he commented, running his thumb over it, sending tingles to my toes. "Your shirt sleeve has a hole in it, and you have bruised knuckles."

I looked down at my hands in surprise. Like Mr. Firay said, on my right hand, my four base knuckles were bruised from when Bryant had stepped on me. I looked back up at Mr. Firay in shock. How had he noticed that?

"Should we talk about this now, or later?" he demanded, his mouthing twisting into a frown.

"There's nothing to talk about," I responded, realizing his hand was still on my face, and pushing it away. "Nothing happened."

He rolled his eyes. "Haven't I told you that you can't lie to me before?"

"I'm not lying," I stated stubbornly.

"Fine," Mr. Firay responded simply, turning around, and walking away from me. "I trust you enough to believe you."

I narrowed my eyes slightly. Was he trying to make me feel guilty? Well, it wouldn't work. I could handle the guilt. After all, I had to handle the guilt of lying to Ariana anyway.

"I'll just beat the truth out of Sage."

I sighed, hanging my head in defeat. "No, don't do that."

"So you'll tell me?"

I bit my lip, staring at the floor. "You won't like it…"

There was a sudden hand on my shoulder and I jumped slightly, unaware that Mr. Firay had come back across the kitchen again. His eyes pierced into mine again, and I had to look away.

"Daphne, I know I won't like it, but it's important that you tell me if something has happened."

"Don't be mad at Sage," I said in a quiet voice.

"Stop worrying about Sage, Daphne!" Mr. Firay demanded, sounding slightly angry. "Worry about yourself!"

I looked at him, a bit taken aback. He gaze was hard and I swallowed nervously.

"Sage, uh…" I struggled to form a coherent thought. With Mr. Firay so close to me, and how nervous I was, it wasn't working so smoothly.

"Sage?" Mr. Firay urged, taking a step away from me.

I immediately relaxed, and looked up at him, frowning. "Sage took me to your old gang hideout…"

Mr. Firay tensed, but didn't say anything, so I continued.

"And after awhile this guy from the gang came, and we had to leave. And I fell down the stairs," I told him, cutting out a lot of the story. "Well I didn't technically fall down the stairs, I actually fell through a step, and that's how I got the cut on my cheek, but Sage was below to catch me."

Mr. Firay pursed his lips. "Daphne, it's obvious you left a lot out."

I scratched my head, looking back at the ground. "This guy had back up… so Sage took out the back up… while the guy came after me… and well he didn't do anything," I said quickly, catching a look of Mr. Firay's dark face. "When I fell, he just stepped on my fingers, so I guess that's how I got the bruises. Or maybe it was when I punched him, but that didn't affect him at all…"

Mr. Firay sighed, shaking his head. "Daphne…"

"But Bryant had me and I didn't want to die!" I said in defense.

"Bryant?" Mr. Firay repeated in a serious tone.

I mentally slapped myself in the face. I wasn't going to tell Mr. Firay it had been Bryant who found us.

"I'm going to murder Sage," Mr. Firay muttered dangerously under his breath. "That little brat..."

"It's not his fault!"

"Bryant, Daphne, is the leader. You attacked the leader! Are you stupid?"

"Sorry for wanting to defend myself," I responded, clenching my fist. "While you were enjoying your stupid date, I could have been injured or killed. Do you really think I'd just let him do whatever he wanted with me?"

Mr. Firay ran a hand through his hair, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. "I'm sorry, Daphne."

"It's okay," I responded softly.

"You just don't understand how serious this is."

"Then tell me!"

Mr. Firay shook his head. "I can't."

"Why not?" I demanded, crossing my arms. "It's all secrets with you, all the time! Don't you even trust me a little?"

Mr. Firay gazed at me for a moment, before turning to the fridge. "Sit. I'm going to get dinner started, Daphne."

I went over to the chair and slumped to the table, watching as Mr. Firay rummaged through my kitchen. I couldn't pull myself away from looking him. His unruly blonde hair, his sturdy build, and his beautiful blue eyes whenever he'd take a quick look at me. When our eyes met, I blushed, and looked away.

I pressed my forehead against the tabletop. Why hadn't he answered me when I asked if he trusted me a little bit? Did that mean he didn't? Or was he just teasing me again? I sighed quietly. Why did I have to fall for such a confusing guy? Not only that, but he was almost five years older than me, and he was my teacher. Heck, my mom probably had a better chance with him than I did.

I laughed slightly at that. My mom was young, but not that young. And it didn't matter anyway. Mr. Firay had a girlfriend now. Or at least, he was dating someone. I let out a quiet frustrated sigh.

"Here."

I looked up to see a steaming mug placed in front of me. I looked up at Mr. Firay who was frowning slightly.

"Thanks," I said slowly, pulling the mug closer to me and peering in.

"Hot chocolate," he told me, "but I added a few extra ingredients."

"Oh."

I took a sip of the liquid, surprised when it didn't burn my tongue. The taste was even more surprising.

"What's in here? It's really good."

Mr. Firay smirked. "It's a secret."

Before I could reply, he turned and walked back to the stove, where he was now cooking the steaks. I frowned for a moment, before returning my attention to the hot chocolate he had made me. I took another sip, savoring the taste.

By the time I finished the hot chocolate Mr. Firay had finished dinner. My mom entered the kitchen just in time, as did Red. My mom looked very pleased.

"Something smells wonderful," she commented, taking a next to me at the kitchen table. Red sat on my left, facing my mom, and looked at the plates Mr. Firay was holding longingly.

"Here," Mr. Firay said, placing a plateful of food in front of her.

"Thank you," she responded.

Mr. Firay nodded, and placed a plate in front of me and Red. She gave him a small and polite 'Thank You'. I nodded my thanks and watched as he sat down across the table from me with his own plate. My mom was the first to take a bite. She moaned her approval. I blushed, embarrassed by her reaction.

"If you were twenty years older, I would marry you," she commented, a smile on her face.

"If only," Mr. Firay responded with a laugh.

I rolled my eyes, cutting off a piece of steak and putting it in my mouth. I frowned when I realized how good it actually was. Not that I'd tell Mr. Firay that after what my mom said.

"You can marry Daphne instead."

I choked on my steak, banging my hand on the table in an automatic reaction. My mom looked at me worriedly. I coughed, trying to dislodge the piece of meat from me airway. Red was laughing her butt off, and almost fell over. When I had finally managed to dislodge the meat, I still continued coughing, my face hot in embarrassment.

"M-mom," I started, turning towards her. "Don't say those things. He's my teacher."

"Only for a year longer," she responded, wagging her eyebrows. I shot a look at Red, who snickered quietly.

I looked down at my plate, too embarrassed to look at Mr. Firay. I had to remember never to let my mom and Mr. Firay meet ever again. Even if I had to murder to stop it.

My mom and Mr. Firay got into an animated chat as I silently ate my dinner, refusing to look up from my plate. I made sure to eat slowly, so I wouldn't be the first one done. When I finally finished, I noticed my mom, Red and Mr. Firay were long since finished eating. Red had been the first to finish, and was probably sleeping upstairs now.

My mom yawned, and stood up. "Let's clear up. I want to go to bed soon."

I stood up with her. "I'll take care of it; you can head up to bed now if you want."

"You sure?"

I nodded, shooing her with my hand. "It's fine. Go rest."

She nodded, and turned to Mr. Firay. "Well, thanks for coming to dinner… and making it."

"No problem, thank you for having me over, and sorry for running into you," Mr. Firay responded in a polite tone.

"Don't worry about it! Let's do this again sometime."

I looked at her in mock horror. Something like this should never happen again!

"Of course," Mr. Firay said, contrary to my thoughts.

I sighed, watching as my mom bid one last goodbye before going to her room. I started picking up the plates, and a hand snatched them away from me. I looked up to see Mr. Firay carrying them towards the kitchen.

"I can do it," I protested, following him.

"Shut up and let me do it."

I scowled slightly, but let it go. If he wanted to help me out, I wasn't going to stop him. It was rare, and I should enjoy it while I could.

I watched as he put the dishes in the dishwasher after rinsing them. I was a little impressed. Most guys who lived alone slacked in the cleaning area. Mr. Firay smirked at me when he finished.

"What are you looking at?"

"Nothing," I responded, a blush spreading on my face. I really needed to stop blushing.

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Sure."

"Really."

"Whatever you say, Daphne."

I ignored his jibe, and turned my attention to my hands. "Sorry about my mom. She's…"

"Amusing," Mr. Firay finished for me. "Nothing to apologize about."

I smiled slightly. "Right."

"But, I'm going to head home now," he told me, stifling a yawn. "I'll see you Monday."

Disappointment washed over me when I remembered Mr. Firay wasn't going on the beach trip tomorrow. I shook it away. I could still have fun with my friends.

"Yeah, okay," I said, following him to the door.

He opened it and turned back at me before exiting. "Goodnight, Daphne."

"Night, Mr. Firay."

He raised an eyebrow.

"Matt," I corrected myself, feeling a blush coming up again, but I fought it back. "Goodnight, Matt."

He smirked, stepping out the door. I sighed in relief, and went to close it, but it suddenly flew back open, smacking me in the face.

"Ow!"

"Sorry," Mr. Firay apologized sounding more entertained than amused. "But I forgot to give you this."

I looked at him in confusion, before looking down at his hand. In it was my cell phone.

"It's a Friday, and you're going out tomorrow, so I wanted to return it," he explained, giving it to me. "Now that's it. Goodbye."

"Thank you," I called before the door shut.

I grinned, looking at the phone in my hand. Mr. Firay could be unexpectedly nice. I flipped open my phone to check my text messages. I stared in surprise at my background.

Instead of Wendell and I as my background image as it was before, it was now replaced by Mr. Firay making a funny face. I couldn't help but giggle at it.

And I wasn't going to change it back either.

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **There you go. This chapter should keep you guys satisfied until Sunday, right? If not, well, you should've thought of that before. :3

To ()'s Review on Pocky: Are you serious? This is probably going to be really awkward. Um...condoms...condoms are...*coughs* They're the things guys use when they 'join' with a girl to try and prevent them from having a baby. Awwkkward.

To ()'s Review on Wishes from the Trickster King: Aww, I'm sorry I made you cry. LOL, that's a good one. I did not know there were computers in the after life. ;D

To warisha: Daphne doesn't use magic because not all the gang members know about magic or Everafters. If she used magic on them, they'd freak out. I think Bryant and Sage are the only ones who know about magic, I think. I don't know what to do with Bryant at the moment. But don't worry. I think Daphne gets to play with magic somewhere in the story. Or maybe in a oneshot? Dunno. But good explaination. ^^ Well, Daphne doesn't really want to be rescued...she kind of has to. Mind you, she was baby-ed in most of the SG series, and she still is the youngest Grimm girl, and quite young. Guys just have the need to protect her. Especially MS. ;D Well, I hope this chapter does satisfy! Ish.

To Cat: Lol, well, I'll try to write another one soon. :) Thanks for the review!

That's all, I think. Hope you guys aren't too mad at me. :3 Anyways, see you Sunday!

~Lara


	28. Chapter 28:

**A/N. …You guys are so cruel. **I plan to update Sunday, but soon as I post the chapter, I get reviews. And reviews. And reviews. And seeing about 20 reviews or so...

**I FELT SO GUILTY**, but seriously, Curlscat and I talked how we felt neglected from the disappearance of reviews, and I felt that I take a few days for myself. ;D But now I know a method of getting you all to review:

Tell the reviewer you're not updating until next week

Do the question of the week

Hee, hee, hee. :D Just kidding, but I might do that first option to get you guys to review once in awhile, but I think I'm going to stick with doing those questions of the week. :D

But hey, I updated a day early! Yay! That means I've updated six times by next Saturday! I was in a good mood after I took my test, so I decided to come bearing a chapter. It wasn't bad at all –the test, I mean. Casey was probably trying to make me fail. HAA! The test wasn't hard, but it wasn't easy either. The only thing I didn't like about the test is that I didn't see anyone from my school there. D: That was depressing. I had to sit in the waiting room/auditorium in the corner all by myself. D: But the test was really understandable (excluding most of the math section…I think I failed, lol). :**D Thank you, though, for all wishing me good luck on my test! Hopefully I get something good out of this. :D**

Anyways, I'll just announce the winner of last week's (_OMPuckin'G; yellow.r0se, how do you pick from all these lovely answers?_) question:

**Congrats 'Warisha' for your review… **

"Oops, I forgot to answer the question of the day. Hmm... I think I'd like to stay 15 to 16 years of age forever if I could. Why do you think people call it sweet sixteen? It's because it's a special age that shows that you've reached maturity officially and can be treated like an adult! You can drive when you're sixteen and you can still goof around like a kid when you feel like it. Everything great rolled up into one age! Plus you could throw a huge sweet sixteen bash every year and get tons of presents! (That's my favorite part.) Also I think all the books I read about staying a glorious sixteen or seventeen year old as an immortal has got to me!"

So, this chapter is dedicated to you, Warisha! ^^

**My Answer to My Question: **I like 14. Just because I like the number 14. XD And, at my school, you're at the top of the school. If I liked 15, I'd be at the bottom of the high school chain, so 14's awesome for me. Also, I get to stay at my school and I love that! I'll never get tired of their Bosco sticks. XD

(_MORE REPLIES ARE AFTER THE CHAPTER!)_

**Big pat on the back to Rosebud143 for she-knows-what! :D Cyber cookies for you!**

**Question of the Week/Day: **If you were any inanimate object, what would you be and why?

**BY THE WAY, THIS IS FOR THE STOVE vs GRILL DEBATE: You can do either. It's just more common to cook on the grill. :D YAY! It's settled! Now let's all go out for some steak and Mustardseed! Wheee!**

Here's the next chapter! (By the way, there's no MS –lol, Multiple Sclerosis, Curlscat- in this chapter, sadly. D: But, read the chapter still? Please? *puppy dog look* Darn, it doesn't work with me and my bug eye glasses…

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 28: Depression Denial<strong>

"D, let's go swimming!"

I looked up at Ariana as she hovered over me, her hands on her hips. I raised an eyebrow.

"Right now?"

"We've been here for four hours, and all you've done is sit there and be depressed," she accused.

"I haven't been depressed," I accused, frowning. "What is there to be depressed about?"

"Hmm, let me think," she started, putting a finger to her chin. "Could it be that Mr. Firay isn't here?"

"What? No! I-I… it isn't that," I stuttered, feeling my face heat up.

Ariana rolled her eyes. "I don't see why you don't just tell him you like him."

"Shh! Lower your voice!"

"Sorry," she said, quieting voice. "But if you like him, I think you should just tell him."

"I can't!" I cried, my eyes widening. "Ariana, you don't understand the situation."

"What's the situation?"

"Oh, I don't know… he's a teacher and I'm a student?"

"And?"

"That's illegal, Ariana."

Ariana waved her hand. "You're a senior. It shouldn't matter."

"He doesn't even like me," I continued, digging a hole in the sand with my bare foot and burying it in it.

Ariana heaved a sigh, shaking her head. "You don't know that."

"He's got a girlfriend."

Ariana's eyes widened in surprise. "Did he tell you that?"

"Well, not in those words," I responded, biting my lip. "But lately he's been going on dates."

Ariana rolled her eyes. "_Amiga_, it sounds to me like your making up excuses not to like him."

I gaped at Ariana, unable to think of a reply. She frowned at me, crossing her arms.

Was I making up excused not to like him? No, that wasn't it. I was just being rational. Yeah!

"I'm just being rational," I explained, furrowing my eyebrows. "I don't want to get my hopes up."

"Well, even if he doesn't like you, there's something special about you to him," she pressed. "Why else would he keep making you stay after school?"

"Because he's a black mailing devil," I muttered.

Ariana sighed. "Daphne. C'mon."

I glanced up at her with a frown. "Ariana, let's forget about it. It's wrong, and impossible, and I just don't want to think about it anymore, okay?"

"Fine you keep on making up excuses," Ariana responded, her face serious. "But when he stops chasing after you, and you lose any chance you have with him, don't come crying to me. You need to stop thinking of wrong and right, Daphne, because when it comes to love, there's no such thing. When you love someone, nothing should be able to come between the two of you. You're just going to be hurting yourself thinking along the lines as 'he can't like me, it's impossible'. Nothing is impossible, _nada es __imposible_."

And with that, she turned and started walking away from me. I watched her walk away, my mouth hanging open slightly.

My best friend had just scolded me about love.

Her words sunk in to my mind, and I knew she was right. I groaned, putting my head in my hands.

I was making up excuses. But it wasn't that I didn't like Mr. Firay, no, I knew I liked him, loved him. But what was there not to love? He had beautiful blue eyes that seemed to pierce right into your soul. His somewhat messy, blonde hair could make him look boyishly cute, or look like a young handsome man. Sure, he had a split personality, but it was sort of a charm point.

I groaned again. But there was something else that kept me from really accepting my feelings, something I didn't want to admit to myself.

I didn't know anything about Mr. Firay.

What I liked was his looks, his actions, and personality. But I didn't know a single thing about his past, besides that he was a gang leader, and he did something that now has the gang wanting him dead. And I didn't know what that was.

What if it was something really bad? Would that change my views of Mr. Firay?

I rubbed my forehead, trying to clear my thoughts. For now, I couldn't let Mr. Firay know of my feelings. I didn't want him to think they weren't real. That I was just like all the other girls at school. For now, I'd deal with my unrequited love, even if it hurt. I could deal with it…gosh, I'm turning into a mushy pile of mush.

My phone suddenly went off and I jumped, my heart rate spiking. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my phone. The caller I.D showed Wendell. I flipped open my phone and put it to my ear.

"Hello?"

"Daphne! How's the beach?"

"Okay."

"You sound excited," he commented with a chuckle.

I laughed. "Don't I? I thought you were working."

"I am," Wendell responded. "I'm on break."

"Oh. How late do you have to work 'til?"

"Closing."

"Fun," I responded, playing in the sand with my feet again.

"Is Firay there?"

"No."

"That's why you sound so depressed."

I opened my mouth in shock, narrowing my eyes. "I'm not depressed! You're just like Ariana!"

"Hey, I'm just stating the truth," Wendell defended, amusement in his voice. "Admit it."

"Have a good shift, Wendell!"

"Daphne—"

I snapped my phone shut in a huff, blushing furiously. I wasn't depressed! I was just…

I looked around me to see I was the only one sitting on the bench, dressed fully. Everyone one else was running around the beach playing Frisbee, or volleyball, or they were playing in the water.

I scowled.

I wasn't depressed.

Kicking up sand, I stood up, marching towards the changing area with my bag. I didn't need Mr. Firay to have fun.

Ariana mock wolf-whistled at me when I came back to the beach after changing into my swimsuit. I blushed, glaring at her.

"Nice legs, daisy dukes, makes a man go," she paused to wolf-whistle again. "The bikini top is a nice addition. _Muy caliente!_"

"I hate them though," I muttered, crossing my arms in front of my chest subconsciously.

I glanced at my blue and white bikini top. It was tied by strings, which I thought was a bad idea. There were some real olives in my grade, and I didn't really want to take the chance of having one of them untie my top.

"If you don't like bikinis, then why are you wearing them?"

I gave her a sour look. "My mom replaced all my swim suits with bikinis. She took my board shorts too, and there's no way I'm walking the beach in just a bikini."

"Flaunt what you got, D," she told me, rolling her eyes.

I stuck my tongue out at her childishly. "Sorry, I like having some modesty."

She just rolled her eyes at me. "Come swimming."

I shook my head. "I'm going to go for a walk. I want to go check out those rocks." I pointed to the stones in the distance that led out into the ocean.

"Ooh! Can I come?"

I nodded. "No Josh though."

We both glanced at Josh, who was roughhousing in the water with some boys from our class. Ariana smiled for a second while staring at him, but then turned back to me, waving her hand dismissively.

"He won't even notice I'm gone."

I chuckled, pushing my hair behind my ear. "Fine, let's go."

Together we started down the beach, walking along the thin wash of broken waves. Our feet splashed in the shallow water, the current trying to drag our feet back to see. Ariana began hopping over the small waves of foam that came after the wave breaks.

"I want to skim board," she complained, kicking a wave, and sending the water spraying up at us.

I winced at the cold feeling on my arm. "Did you bring a skim board?"

"No," she muttered moodily.

I laughed, pushing her slightly. "Then that's your own fault. Borrow one from someone."

Ariana sighed. "I guess I'll have to at some point. But it's almost curfew. I'll have to do it _la ma__ñ__ana."_

The walk to the rocks was taking longer than I had expected. I must have misjudged the distance. The closer we got, however, the larger the stones appeared. Ariana sped up slightly.

"Look at that!" she cried, her eyes wide. "It's like a fort! Hurry, D!"

"Ariana, we still have a way to walk —argh!" I cried out as she suddenly grabbed my wrist and started sprinting. "Ariana!"

"C'mon, c'mon! _Rapido_!"

I scowled slightly, but didn't dare to stop running. Knowing me, I'd probably end up tripping over my feet and falling into the water.

When we finally reached the boulders, we were both panting, and holding stitches in our sides. I leaned against one of the large, cool, black rocks trying to catch my breath. Ariana regained her breath quicker and admired the stones.

She started climbing one, and I followed in pursuit. The top of the rock was flat, and stable to stand on. Ariana started hopping to the next one, which had a two feet crevice between the one I was on. I stepped over it cautiously, looking down to see a black hole.

"Ariana!" I cried as she jumped from the boulder, into a crevice.

"Follow me," she responded.

I looked over the crevice to see Ariana at the bottom looking up at me. The crevice was taller than her head. I nervously lowered myself down, dropping onto the sand. Ariana started walking down the crevice and I followed, running my hand against the moist rock walls.

Ariana turned a corner, and I followed, surprised to see it led to a small section of the beach, even though stones sectioned it off. Ariana turned and grinned at me.

"This is so cool."

I couldn't help but return her grin with one of my own. "You've always been good at exploring."

Ariana smirked smugly, before walking to the other side of the small beach area. I followed, staring in wonder at the area I was looking at. It was literally a part of the beach that was sectioned off by rocks. The large black stones even went about ten feet into the ocean, and the tops of the walls also went higher than the flat tops of the boulders we had first came off. It was totally private.

"I bet people like to have sex in here," Ariana commented, grinning cheekily. "It's so private, _privado_."

"You have such a dirty mind," I responded, rolling my eyes.

"Check this out."

I walked over to where she was, and peered around her. There seemed to be a tunnel in the rock.

"Should we go in there?"

I shook my head. "There's probably only trash and stuff. Let's go climb the rock pier before the curfew comes."

Ariana stared longingly at the small cave before sighing. "_Si_."

We made our way out of the little private area, and with some effort, pulled ourselves out of the crevice and onto the flat stone. The sun was beginning to set now.

"Should we go back?" Ariana asked.

I glanced back at the beach where our class had set up, and could still see people playing in the water.

"I think we're okay," I told Ariana, who was also looking.

"If we go fast, right?"

We nodded at each other and started carefully climbing across the rocks that led to the rock pier. I wanted to make it out to the last stone. There were puddles of water on some of them, and every now and again I'd step on one and scare myself.

Ariana was kicking a pebble, expertly getting across crevice after crevice as I barely managed to stumble from rock to rock without falling in one. There was a large crevice between the stone and the one we were currently on, so Ariana gave a hard kick to the rock, sending it soaring. It went way past the other one.

I snickered as Ariana flushed in embarrassment.

"Ow!"

Ariana and I looked at each other in surprise and scrambled across the crevice, looking down the other side of the rock. A pair of teenage boys was standing below us. One of them had shaggy black hair, and the other had a buzz cut. The one with the buzz cut was holding a hand to his head and holding the pebble in his other hand.

Ariana jumped down before I could stop her, and jogged up to the boy with the buzz cut.

"I am so sorry!" she apologized.

"I think I'm bleeding," he said, pulling his hand away from his head for a second, before quickly replacing it. "Yeah, definitely bleeding."

I rolled my eyes. Yeah right.

"Sorry!" Ariana apologized again, sounding flustered. "Let me check it out."

Ariana reached a hand up to the teen's head, but before I could protest, the teen grabbed her wrist, a smirk spreading across his face. I immediately tensed up, watching them carefully.

"Let go," Ariana demanded, trying to yank her wrist free.

"Are you alone? You don't look busy right now, so why don't you have some fun with us?"

"I'm here with my boyfriend," Ariana retorted, trying to pull her hand away.

I scowled, preparing to shout at the guy. Then the guy with the black hair finally made his move, grabbing Ariana's other arm.

"It'll be fun," he told her.

"Let go!" Ariana repeated, with more force.

I caught my breath and watched nervously. What should I do? Go get someone? No, there wasn't time for that.

I realized they hadn't noticed me, so I quietly backed away from the rock, and started going around it. I could hear Ariana's angry voice and the boys' joking ones as I slyly came up from behind the boys. I quietly begged Ariana not to look at me.

"Stay still," the one with the buzz cut said, jerking Ariana's arm hard.

"Ow!" she cried, being pulled forward.

I quietly dropped behind the pair of boys, trying to make the least amount of noise as possible. To my dismay, I landed with a thud. They heard me land, and turned in shock.

The buzz cut boy smirked. "I see you want in on the fun."

Without thinking, I punched the buzz cut teen in the face, using my full force. He let go of Ariana in surprise, stumbling back a few steps. I silently scolded myself. I needed to stop punching people.

After I got Ariana away.

I turned to the shaggy haired one, holding up my fist threateningly.

"Let her go."

He snorted. "You may have caught him off-guard, but you won't—"

I sent my fist into his face, cutting him off. Ariana managed to free herself, and started sprinting away, grabbing my arm and dragging me with her. The buzz cut guy looked up at me with a scowl and flipped me off.

"At least I wasn't beat by a girl," I yelled back childishly, rounding the corner with Ariana.

We scrambled up the crevice, quickly making our way across the rocks, and back to the beach, were we continued running back to the class site. My feet splashed through the cool water as I kept throwing cautious glances before me.

I wasn't that worried. I had taken on a gangster before; I could take on two teenaged guys.

We didn't stop running until one of the chaperones on the trip was in our sight. We slowed gradually to a walk, and the finally slumped onto the benches, out of breath. I leaned back, my throat burning.

"I hate running," I panted.

"Where," Ariana started, taking a deep breath. "Did you learn… how to punch... like that? I thought you couldn't even make a fist."

I gave a noncommittal shrug of the shoulders, and Ariana let it go.

Like I would tell her I needed to learn how to punch someone because I was involved with gangsters. Hah. Of course, I could tell her that I learned it when I was young, but that'd make more complications.

"If anyone asks, that didn't happen," Ariana said seriously, her breath regained. "Josh would kill me."

"I'm bleeding," I mocked, a smirk on my face.

Ariana scowled. "I was being polite."

I rolled my eyes. "This is why I don't like the beach. There are tons of perverts around, waiting to scoop up girls in bathing suits."

Ariana stuck out her tongue. "Not always."

I laughed, letting out a sigh of relief with it. At least it wasn't anything serious. I have expected something like that to happen anyway. I mean it happened in movies all the time.

Suddenly I remembered we hadn't made it out to the last stone on the rock pier.

I groaned and Ariana looked at me with a worried expression.

"We didn't get to go on the rock pier!"

Ariana shoved me hard. "There's always tomorrow."

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **Sorry it's short, and filler-ish. I was stuck, but I really wanted to post something for you guys. I forgot who, but someone said this is 250-300 pages long like a real book! ^^ That's awesome! Thank you…*checks* ! :D That's really cool. :D And I'll probably take you up on that offer. ;D

Replies, replies, replies: (WARNING: IT'S VEERRRYYY LONG!)

**Warisha's first review of Ch. 27:** XD I promise, I will try. I didn't really plan for this story to be a magic filled story. :/ More like an AU one, but I'll see what my brain comes up with. Lol, I can't predict the future, silly. ;D Daphne and Mustardseed will get married if they want to! Well, here's the chapter so you waited patiently enough –I'm proud! Thanks! OMG I'm shaking –I'm so scared of what I got for the Duke TIP –**I'm freaking ouuuutttt, man! **Awww, that warms my heart. You'd rather read than do school work. Thank you. ^^ **Warisha's second review of Ch. 27: **Lol, you have really good reasons! XD

**Fanficlover: **Aw, muchas gracias, amigo! ^^ Thanks so much! Here's the update! ^^

**Cat: **Thanks! XD Hee hee. I friggin loved writing that part. That was so much fun… Yes, Sunday. You waited until _Saturday _though; here's a cookie. *gives* :D Lol, I promise. Cross my heart, hope to die I will write a juicy fighting scene (at least, to me it'll be juicy. But an FYI: I have almost 0 experience with writing about fighting so if it turns out bad, lo siento. :3)! **Cat's Review, Number Two: **Lol. XD Ah, that's true. I was 11 in 2009, and that was probably the best year of my life. My friends and I were so close, and no one had switched schools, or suddenly be cold to each other…*sigh* I miss those times. Anyways, lol. I don't like chores either. Unless I get something like a hug or a big thank you –not necessarily money, I don't really need money….._OH. _Now, I understand TheyCallMeRed's 'Don't Hate Me For This' (I didn't see the 'Cat'. :D). Nevermind. Lol, you two remind me of my friend and I. I'd be TheyCallMeRed, and you, Cat, would be my friend Ariana. XD Anyways, muchas gracias for the review! **Cat's Review, Number Three: **Yeah, I know. I cook on them sometimes. Thanks for saying so!

**TheyCallMeRed: **It's fine. I've cooled down now. I think I needed that break, actually. All the stress of writing and studying was getting to me. I feel better now. Sorry you had to wait, but hopefully this week's actual five day update will be awesome for you, along with this early surprise update. 1. MS just likes Daphne's name. ;D 2. Lol, I know they're better on a BBQ (trust me, I have BBQs every time we watch a Manny Paquiao fight and I _learned _to make them when I was like 11 or so.), but think about it: Daphne lives in quite a small apartment in New York City. Do you think they have a big back yard or something where they can have a BBQ? And well, MS is a really good cook –so says my story, so he should be able to make a stove-cooked steak taste as good as a BBQ-cooked steak, right? 3. Oh, no! Not at all. Henry and Basil are in New Jersey for work and stuff (Basil actually is just tagging along. :3); they're not divorced. I didn't mean to make them sound divorced… Yeah, I'm happy, thanks for saying so. xD It's Peace, Love, Happiness, Food! **TheyCallMeRed, Review Number Two:** Lol. I'm 13, and pretty happy.0.o? Why would I hate you?...(Oh, I see the word 'Cat'. :D) I have crushes too, you know. (*cough* Puck *cough* Mustardseed *cough*) I freakin' love Artemis! But yeah, I don't think I could swear off boys. XD Me too. I'm Matttian, but Mythology's interesting too.

**ANannyMouse: **(love your username by the way) Lol, that's okay. To the beach. This chapter said so. :D That makes sense. :3 But I'm too stupid to know that. XD I explained that in the chapter –she was kind of a ditz before she was kidnapped and all that. And when her family returned to NY, so did her ditzy personality [return]. That's okay. :D Yeah, I mean, imagine Henry bubbly…you can't right? LOL. :D Yeah, and they're going to appear sometime in the story. :D Lol, I know that. :D I explain it at the top A/N. ^^ Today's _Saturday _though. ;DDD

**I WILL REALLY START THE 5 DAY UPDATE TOMORROW! BE READY! AND HAPPY CATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK FOR THOSE WHO HAVE IT! ^^**

**~Lara**


	29. Chapter 29:

**A/N. ***creepy grin* You're probably asking yourself, "Oh no. Lara's thinking. What's she thinking about?" *waves off-handedly* Oh nothing… :D Hee hee hee. There's two things I'm thinking about, but only one concerns you guys. ^^ It's in this chapter though! So, I'm not spoiling it!

**YAY! IT'S FIVE DAY UPDATE!**

Thanks for last chapter's reviews! ^^ Oh, and I'm not picking a winner until the week's up. So the question for this whole still is **If you could be any inanimate object, what would you be and why?**

By the way, Elli's BSGS2011 is almost ending! If you haven't voted yet, please vote for **For the First Time!** ^^ I'd love all of you for it! And remember: If I win, six chapters for the whole week! Yes, six –remember that good number.

Um…I'm sure that's all. The _Anon. Review Replies are at the Bottom!_

**Chapter 29: Volleyball is My Enemy**

I woke in the morning to the excited sounds of twittering girls. I scowled, rolling over and pressing my head against my pillow.

"I can't believe it!" Willow cried excitedly.

"Me either! Daphne! Daphne, wake up!"

"No," I moaned, covering my ears. "I want to sleep…"

"Daphne, it's noon. Half the class is already at the beach!" Ariana responded, nearly shouting. "Plus, there is something I want you to see!"

"Trust me, you'll want to see it!" Willow added.

"Come on, get up and get ready!"

I felt the covers being ripped off of me and I clung to them for dear life. I heard Ariana grunt, and yank harder.

"No," I moaned, keeping a firm grasp. "Just a little longer…"

"No!"

With tremendous force, Ariana was able to pull the comforter off me. I sat up straight, scowling at her. Willow's hands were also on the blanket. She dropped them immediately, a sheepish grin on her face.

"Sorry, but we should go to the beach," she said, and Ariana nodded.

"Fine," I said, sighing in resignation. "Let me change into some clothes—"

"Don't bother," Ariana responded quickly. "We'll be swimming and stuff, so just throw on your swimsuit."

I frowned slightly. "I'm at least wearing shorts…"

Ariana rolled her eyes. "Fine, wear shorts then, but hurry up! And do something with your hair."

I gave her a quizzical look. If we were going swimming, why would I have to do my hair? Sighing, I climbed out of my bed and walked over to my backpack. I grabbed my bikini top and bottom, a pair of shorts, and my hairbrush before going to the hotel bathroom.

I used the toilet, and washed my face before stripping out of my clothes and pulling on the bathing suit and shorts. I brushed out my hair, fixing my bangs. When I thought they looked presentable, I left the bathroom, snagging my beach towel from the towel hanger on the way.

"You ready?" Ariana asked, waiting by the door with Willow.

I nodded, slipping on my flip-flips, and following them out of the hotel room. The door locked behind us, and I hoped either Ariana or Willow had the hotel key.

We made our way to the hotel lobby, where a few kids from out class were hanging out in the very comfortable looking recliners. They seemed to be playing catch with a hacky sack. Ms. Dayscall was there too, probably keeping an eye on them. She waved at us as we walked by and I returned the wave.

I yawned as we stepped outside the hotel. A cool breeze nipped at me immediately and I looked at the sky with a frown. It definitely looked like it was going to rain. However, it was still warm enough to go swimming, so as long as it didn't rain for a while, I didn't mind.

We trudged across the street that led to the beach, and climbed up the boardwalk that went over the dunes. At the top, the ocean suddenly spread out in front of me, stretching out for what looked like forever. I smiled at the sight of it; it was so refreshing.

A large group of people were playing beach volley ball off to the right a little. I caught Ariana looking at the group of people with a grin. She looked at me, and nodded her head at the group of people.

"Want to go play?"

I raised an eyebrow. "No…"

"Are you positive?" she asked, slowly frowning. "Do you not see…?"

"Let's go closer," Willow suggested, pushing my back and leading me down the other side of the dune, to the beach.

I stumbled for a minute, but managed to maintain my balance as she pushed me down the boardwalk. Ariana trailed behind us, an excited grin still on her face. For some reason, I felt weary for the reason of Willow and Ariana's giddiness. I hope they weren't planning on a surprise attack on me with water guns or something…

The closer we got to the group playing beach volleyball, the louder they became. A few people on the sidelines were cheering, and the girls playing were making loud, unnecessary squeals and shouts. I rolled my eyes slightly.

That's when my eyes caught sight of _him_.

I froze, my eyes widening. Were my eyes playing tricks on me? I glanced at Ariana, who grinned back at me.

"Now are you glad you came?"

I turned back the group playing volleyball, putting a hand over my eyes to shade them against the small bit of sunlight that was peeking out from the many clouds. There was no way I was imagining things.

There stood Mr. Firay in all his bare-chested glory.

But then a girl falling into him blocked his body from view. I narrowed my eyes slightly. Was that an accidental trip, or was it on purpose? Ariana's smile slowly disappeared and she turned to me sheepishly.

"Okay, well… there may be girls all over him, but he's here!"

"I don't care if there are girls all over him," I stated stubbornly, crossing my arms.

"I do," Willow interjected, scowling at the girls who stood at a two feet radius around Mr. Firay. "I mean, you have positions in volleyball! Why are they all standing so close to him?"

"You jealous?" Ariana asked, jabbing her in the side.

"Yeah," Willow admitted without hesitation. "It's annoying."

Something in my gut twisted, and I stared at the ground, biting my lip. It was funny. I was feeling jealous of someone being jealous. I almost laughed out loud at the idea.

"Let's go join in then," Ariana suggested, nodding her head towards the game.

"I'm in," Willow said, grabbing Ariana and dragging her towards Mr. Firay.

"Coming, Daphne?"

I opened my mouth, about to say no, but decided against it. A smirk made its way onto my face. "Yeah, I'll play."

Ariana beamed at me; happy I was actually going to play. Volleyball wasn't my sport. We trooped over to Mr. Firay, and he glanced at us briefly but then did a double take.

I pretended to be interested in the sand as we got closer. I heard Mr. Firay call time, and a resounding chorus of "okay" came soon after from the girls playing. Ariana suddenly stopped and I nearly ran into her.

"Hey, Mr. Firay," Ariana started, and I had to resist the urge to look up. "Got room for three more players?"

"Of course," Mr. Firay responded without hesitation. "It'll make it even, but one of you will have to go on the other team."

I looked up now, raising my hand. "I'll go on the other team."

"You sure?" Ariana asked, turning around in surprise. "I don't mind—"

"No," I assured her, "I want to."

My gaze met Mr. Firay's for a brief moment. For one split second, his eyes dropped and I had the impression he was just now noticing I was only in my bathing suit. Good thing I decided to wear shorts.

I walked to the other side of the volleyball court, ducking under the net. I glanced at my team. Luckily, they were all people I was sort of friends with. Also, Tina was on this team. She grinned at me, and pointed to the spot next to her. I walked over to her and took it.

"You're serving," she informed me, handing me the volleyball.

"Umm," I hesitated, looking at the white ball in my hands. "I actually don't think—"

Someone blew a whistle and I jumped, nearly dropping the volleyball. I glanced at Mr. Firay as the whistled bounced against his chest as he dropped it. He smiled in amusement.

"Serve at will, Ms. Grimm."

I took a deep breath, staring nervously at the ball in my hand. I didn't even remember how to serve! Why had I decided to play again?

Oh yeah. To try to show up Mr. Firay.

But how could I do that when I didn't even know how to serve? I groaned internally, letting out my breath. Here goes nothing.

I balanced the ball on top of my left palm, and curled the fingers on my right hand. As fast as I could, I brought up my right hand, and slammed the heel of my hand into the volleyball.

Suddenly there was pain in my face, and people laughing. My face flamed as the volleyball dropped to the ground after bouncing off my face. I rubbed my nose, avoiding eye contact with everyone.

How I managed to hit myself in the face with a volleyball, I would never know.

Scowling, I bent down and readjusted the volleyball onto the flat of my left palm again. This time, instead of looking at the volleyball, I looked straight at Mr. Firay, who was smirking in amusement. I stepped forward with my right foot, exerting my pressure to the swing of my arm. The heel of my hand connected with the volleyball, and this time it went sailing across the net.

All the way to the out of bounds area.

Both teams erupted in laughter again, and I heard the sound of a whistle. I hung my head in embarrassment, a sigh escaping my lips. Discreetly as possible, I stole a glance at Mr. Firay. He was just about laughing his head off.

My face burned again as the other team rotated. Tina caught my attention and mimicked my motion of hitting the volleyball, and then pretended to get hit in the face. Then she mimicked me again, hitting the pretend volleyball, and then looking into the sky, with her eyes shaded by her hand.

"Where'd it go?" she shouted, looking around in the sky.

I scowled at her as my team broke out into fresh laughter. "It's not that funny!"

"Guys, come on, let's continue the game," I heard Ariana call from the other side, but I could tell she was trying not to laugh as well.

The game continued, and luckily, the ball never came to me. Tina landed a point for our team, and we rotated. This time I was in the middle. My team gave me nervous looks and I returned them.

"Good luck," one of the girls, Anna, said.

"I'll need it," I responded glumly.

Tina was serving now. She hit a clean serve to the other side of the court, which was returned by Ariana. The volleying continued until Mr. Firay made a hard spike that landed just at Anna's feet.

I glared at him as his team cheered, the girls rushing to give him high fives. Scowling, I rotated out of the center. Now Mr. Firay was serving on the other team. For five straight serves in a row, he got a point for his team. If someone had been walking by, they would have thought there was a mass murder or something from all the screaming.

"Ms. Grimm, this one is for you," Mr. Firay called, gaining my eye contact.

I blushed and looked away, until I remembered he said he was serving to me. My head snapped up, just in time to see the volleyball coming. Panicking, I tried to remember what move was best to hit the upcoming volleyball. Wildly, I returned it with a set.

Everyone watched as the ball went sailing to the other side, and landed in the dirt before anyone could reach it.

And it was in bounds.

Suddenly, people cheering surrounded me, and even the other team was clapping. Ariana wolf-whistled at me. A smug smirk slipped onto my face as I looked at Mr. Firay. He smirked back, mouthing something. I cocked my head in confusion, and he repeated it.

"I gave you an easy serve."

I scowled at him, not even bothering to respond. Anna was serving now. I watched as she hit the ball easily over the net. It was returned with a dig from Ariana, and then returned again with a set from Tina. Mr. Firay stepped forwards, grinning at me. I braced myself, ready to return his hit.

He set up for a set, so I relaxed myself slightly. At the last moment however, he spiked it. Unprepared for the sudden volleyball whizzing at my face, I let it smack into me. I stumbled backwards and fell over from shock, my face stinging painfully.

"Daphne!"

"Ow," I moaned, bringing a hand up to my face.

Ariana's face appeared over mine, looking half worried, half amused. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, I just wasn't expecting it."

Mr. Firay appeared over me now, frowning. He held out a hand and I hesitated for a fraction of a second before taking it. Without any effort, he pulled me to my feet.

"Sorry," he apologized, running a hand through his hair. "I wasn't aiming for your face…"

"I'm fine—"

"Daphne! Your nose is bleeding!" Ariana cried, her hand covering her mouth.

I raised a hand up to my nose in surprise, and pulled it away, finding it covered with blood. A lot of blood. For a moment I swayed, the sight of so much blood making me queasy.

"Come on," Mr. Firay started, grabbing my shoulder. "I have the first-aid kit on the bench."

Mr. Firay pushed me towards the benches. I plugged my nose, tilting my head back. The feeling of the blood trickling down my throat almost made me gag.

"Don't lean your head back," Mr. Firay scolded me. "Forwards."

I did as he said, and leaned forwards. Mr. Firay continued to guide me until we made it to the bench. He sat me down, and pulled out a large black box from under where I sat.

"Here."

I looked up and saw Mr. Firay holding out a package of tissues to me. I grabbed them, trying to open them with one hand. It wasn't working out to well. Mr. Firay chuckled, taking the tissue pack back and opening the plastic for me. This time he gave it to me and I could pull out a few. I took my hand away and crumpled the tissues up and put them to my nose.

"Sorry about that," Mr. Firay apologized again. "But the face you made was hilarious— before _and_ after the ball hit."

I blushed and frowned. "I didn't know you were going to spike."

"Your pinching the wrong part of your nose," he told me, grabbing my hand and lowering it until I pinched the soft portion of my nose.

It was a good thing I had been blushing from the earlier comment, otherwise the blush I had know might have made him curious. He removed his hand and I nodded my thanks.

"Why are you here?" I asked, my voice sounding funny due to my nose being pinched.

"I got called in as a replacement chaperone," he told me, sitting down on the bench. "Mr. Cole got sick last night, so I was asked to drive up here today."

"Oh," I responded.

"Lucky me."

"Was that sarcasm?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow.

Mr. Firay sighed, shaking his hair out of his face. "Trust me. Being around half naked high school girls isn't as fun as it seems. Especially when they try to flirt with you or rub against you every five minutes."

Jealously was bubbling inside me again, but I forced it away. There was nothing to be jealous about!

"You know, must guys would like that," I tried to say in a teasing voice, but it ended up sounding relieved.

"Yeah, well if you haven't noticed, I'm not most guys."

I looked up at Mr. Firay who had a smirk on his face. I chuckled slightly, returning my gaze back to the ground.

"Right. You're a handsome teacher who is an ex-gangster, and your old gang is out to kill you for some reason, and you won't let me know the reason even though I was dragged into your problems. Not to mention you like blackmailing people, and have a split-personality. Oh and did I mention the fact that you lied and said you couldn't cook well and then when I had to stay at your house, you suddenly were a great chef? And then you made dinner for my mom and myself which was equally as delicious."

I paused, taking in a deep breath. Warmth was spreading across my face from my sudden outburst.

"You think I'm handsome?" Mr. Firay asked, a smirk on his face, and an eyebrow cocked.

I scowled. "Was that all you got out of that entire rant?"

"I also caught the part where you said I was a great chef, and that what I made was delicious."

"Narcissistic," I muttered, shaking my head.

Mr. Firay laughed. "I'm just kidding, Daphne."

I pursed my lips at him. "Why do you call me Ms. Grimm in front of others? You call everyone else by their first name in."

"Are you going back to the hotel?" he asked, ignoring me completely.

I scowled. "No, are you?"

Mr. Firay shook his head. "No, I have to stay on the beach to watch everyone. What are you planning to do?"

"Not play volleyball again."

He chuckled. "Good plan."

"Mr. Firay!"

I looked up to see Vanessa waving frantically at Mr. Firay. I rolled my eyes at her bikini top. Was that bathing suit even considered a bikini top? There was barely anything there!

"Come back, we want to play again and we need you!" she shouted, gesticulating with her hand.

Mr. Firay sighed, pushing himself off the bench. He stood in front of me for a moment, and I got a view of his chest, and six-pack. Slightly surprised, I gazed at his stomach. How had I not noticed he had abs? But then again, it shouldn't have been too surprising seeing how he was in a gang for about five years…

"See something you like, Daphne?"

I blushed, glaring at him. "Yeah, I would if you took two steps to the right. It's the brown haired guy, right behind you."

Mr. Firay whipped around, and I chuckled. Frowning, he turned back to me.

"Maybe it's because you're special."

With that, he started jogging back to the volleyball area. I stared after him for a moment, completely confused. What did he mean by that? It didn't make any sense!

Then it hit me. He was answering my early question.

_Why do you call me Ms. Grimm in front of people?_

Instantly my face flushed.

Special as in what, though? That I knew of his other personality? That I knew he was an ex-gangster? That I knew he was a good cook? That I knew how he was like outside of school?

Or was it special as in…

I shook my head. Don't even go there, Daphne, I told myself. It was impossible…

That I was special to him.

**A/N. **Okay, now I think all I have left to do is the replies:

**ANannyMouse: **You're welcome! ^^ That's okay. Lol. Thanks! :D Yeah, I saw one of those at the beach when I was with my friend, Jordan –she's the one who told me to put it in this chapter. Yeah, Ariana and Daphne balance out. I mean, I've made Daphne REALLY OOC, so Ariana brings back the Daphne-ish, I think! Annoying? Really? Well, they just want her happy, you know? It's one of those things where your friends are pushovers, but for a good reason. Of course, I'll try and take it down a notch and leave it at teasings, okay? Hm, well, what about I just start writing 'Daphne' again? If Ariana's talking, she'll call her 'Daphne' or 'Amiga' or anything besides 'D'. Is that okay? Oh, yeah. :3 Thanks for pointing that out. :D Thanks for the review!

**Warisha: ^^ **Yeah, everyone seems to like Hero Daphne. xD True that. Lol, okay. Action. Got it. Well, of course I _see _the future, but I can't _tell you _the future because that would ruin the story! ^^

I'm updating tomorrow! ^^ Bye bye for now!

~Lara


	30. Chapter 30:

**A/N. **Hi, hi! Sorry this took me longer than usual (according to my time, I usually update around 5-6 PM)! I was replying to my Logged-In Reviewers, and finishing homework at the same time. :3 Oh, I also ate a ten minute dinner (that usually takes me 20 to eat) before I posted this so…I'm in a hurry, haha.

**HAPPY NATIONAL BUBBLEWRAP DAY! **Yes, bubblewrap day. That's awesome. They said so on the news this morning. xD **Oh, and Happy Catholic Schools Week! **I LOOOVE this week where they have Field Day and Book Fair at my school. It's awesome. On Thursday, my English class will go to the Book Fair and I'm determined to buy "The Grimm Legacy". **I want that book. **The word 'Grimm' caught my eye, of course. xD It's not by MB, but it does have something to do with the Brothers Grimm. …Hey, **Curlscat, is there a disease that the letters 'MB' could stand for? :D **So yeah…I got to see what the Book Fair looked like this morning when I got to school early today, and it's all…_Hawaiian._ It's so cool. xD Anyways…

Um, don't hate me. Please. Daphne needs to be the damsel once in awhile. :3

Oh, did you guys notice? I uploaded the 28th chapter on Jan. 28, the 29th chapter on Jan. 29, and today, the 30th of Jan has the 30th chapter? I dunno if I'll be able to upload the 31st chapter on the 31st, but I shall try! ^^ I like this streak…_and _it'll be _four _days that I uploaded in a row. xDD I love the number four.

**Again, if you haven't answered: What inanimate object would you be and why?**

_**And, if you haven't **_**voted, **_**please vote for **__**For the First Time**__** in Elli's **__**BSGS2011**__! The contest ends the 2__nd__ of February, and the winner(s?) are announced on the 4__th__! You guys will get six updates in one week –remember that!_

Here's Chapter 30!

**Chapter 30: Drew and Zach**

Waves splashed against the black rocks as I gazed into the deep blue ocean, entranced by it. It was such a dark blue, it was almost impossible to see through. And of course the cloudy day wasn't helping it at all.

I looked up at the sky for a moment. It had gotten considerably darker since I had come out here…

I lowered myself into a squatting position, suddenly terrified of falling in. I had no clue how deep it was down there. Glancing back at the shore, judging by the distance, I figured it was pretty deep.

Barely anyone was on the rock pier today. Yesterday, it had been crowded, but today, only a few stray fishermen lined the rocks leading out, but none of them were as far as I was. I had walked all the way to the end of it, where the little white post was.

Getting here had actually been a difficult task. Not all the stones were flat on the top and connected, so I had to jump a lot of gaps between them. It wasn't so bad, but it was terrifying if you thought about falling into the ocean. There was at least a seven-foot drop from the pebbles to the ocean. But as you grew closer, the ocean level rose, so where I was standing currently, there was only about a half-foot drop.

Ariana was too busy playing volleyball, so she didn't come with me this time. I sighed, staring back at the mesmerizing ocean. To me, it was an entrancing, yet terrifying body of water. My worst fear was falling in and either drowning, or having some kind of sea creature attack me.

I chuckled at my next thought. What if there was a kraken or something in it? Or those mermen that had captured Sabrina and Uncle Jake a few years ago? I wouldn't be able to see them because of the overcast and deep water…

I slowly moved away from the edge of the stones. Curse my imagination!_ Krakens_ didn't even exist…right? Well, because Everafters and whatnot were real, there was the possibility…I sent one more nervous peek at the ocean before turning my attention to the white post.

Hundreds of names and initials were etched into it, or written on with marker. I ran my eyes along the rocks until I spotted a small and sharp one. Bending down, I grabbed it, and began carving my own initials into the post.

As a second thought, I made a heart after my name and added the letters M.F. next to it. When I was finished, I chucked the pebble into the ocean, hearing it land with a _plunk_. I giggled a little at my childish idea. Hopefully Mr. Firay wouldn't come out here.

I felt something moist on my bare skin and I looked up with a frown to find it drizzling slightly, and even darker than before. I sighed, knowing I should head back. I didn't want it to be pitch black as I tried to make my way off the rock pier.

Stretching, I adjusted my bikini top, wishing I had worn a sweatshirt, or shirt at least. With the rain and slight wind, it wasn't a really warm temperature as it had been earlier.

To make it easier to walk, I took off my flip-flops and held them in my hand. Making my way carefully from each rock to the next was turning out to be more difficult on the way back then to. The rain was quickening now, making them more slippery. Scowling in annoyance, I cautiously maneuvered myself around a boulder I couldn't climb over.

My foot slipped, and a strangled cry escaped my throat as I fell forward. For one gut-wrenching second I thought I was going to topple over the edge, but I managed to catch myself on the next rock before I could do so. I pulled myself back into a standing position, my heart hammering against my chest.

I should have at least told someone I was coming here. Stupid, stupid Daphne.

Gathering up my courage, I continued at a snail-like pace across the rocks. I kept my eyes off of the ocean below, knowing it would only frighten me more. As I slowly approached the shore, the sky rain fell heavier, and the sky grew darker. When I finally made it to the relatively flat portion of the stones, I relaxed immediately. At least now I couldn't fall into the ocean.

When I finally made it to the shore, I did a little dance of victory. Somehow I managed to let go of one of my flip-flops. I scowled as it fell down one of the crevices. Getting on my hands and knees, I crawled to the edge of the crevice, looking down. My flip-flop was lying in a puddle of water at the bottom.

Positioning my right hand across the crevice for support, I leant my upper body down, and reached with my left hand. My fingertips just barely brushed the top of my flip-flop. I tried to force myself further down the crevice, but my shoulders were too wide.

Suddenly I heard a wolf-whistled behind me. Ariana. I retracted myself out of the hole with a sigh.

"Ariana, I dropped my flip-flop and…" I trailed off when I looked up at the person who wolf-whistled.

He was definitely not Ariana.

It was hard to make the person out in the rain, but I could definitely tell that it was a man. I slowly stood up, forgetting my flip-flop for the moment.

"Well, look who it is," the man commented, taking a step closer. "It's the bitch from yesterday."

As soon as the man took two steps closer, I recognized him as the buzz cut dude I had punched yesterday. Internally, I groaned. It was just my luck to run into him now. Why did this kind of stuff always happen to me?

Better you than Ariana, a voice in my head said. I had to agree with that.

"Zach," the buzz cut dude called, "come look!"

A few moments later, Zach appeared in my vision. I realized with a shock that he was brown haired guy that was with buzz cute dude yesterday. Zach raised his eyebrows, a smirk slipping onto his face.

"Good find, Drew," Zach laughed, patting his friend on the back.

"I need to go back to my class before they get worried," I told the pair through gritted teeth. "Although I'd love to stay and chat."

"Then stay," Drew said with an evil grin. "Let them worry."

"No, it's alright."

I started to walk around the pair, but they stepped in my way. I tried the other way, and they stepped in my way again. I scowled, glaring as best as I could. They returned my looks with amused ones.

"You don't think we're just going to let you off after what you did yesterday, do you?"

I narrowed my eyes. "If I got you both yesterday, what makes you think today will be any different?"

Drew smirked and reached into his pocket. What he pulled out made my blood turn cold.

He had produced a switchblade. I stared at it apprehensively for a moment, and then back at him.

"Those are illegal to carry around," I stated, trying to sound calmer than I really was. Why couldn't I have had a wand at this time? At this moment? Magic sounded really good at the moment.

Drew snorted. "It's not like anyone will know I have it. Grab her, Zach."

Zach stepped forward, reaching out his arm to grab me. In a slight panic, I slammed my remaining flip-flop into his face. He cried out in surprise, his arm dropping away from me. I let my flip-flop go and spun around, jumping across the crevice, and racing over the stone.

"Get her!" I heard Drew shout.

I slid on the slippery rock surfaces as I tried to climb from rock to rock without falling. Twisting my ankle didn't sound too pleasant to me at the moment. I scrambled past the crevice that led to the sectioned of beach Ariana and I found the day before. My mind wandered briefly if that was a good place to hide, but I figured I wouldn't be able to get in without being noticed and followed.

Instead, I went further along the pebbles, my heart racing. I had no clue where I was going, or where the rocks led to, I just knew I had to get away from the man with the switchblade. I could probably take on the Zach guy…

I glanced over my shoulder, trying to see if they were on my tail. Relief swept through me when I realized they weren't in my vision. Suddenly, I was falling. I held in my cry of pain as I felt my ankle twist painfully. I landed on a different boulder, sliding down its slippery surface until my face came to a crevice. My head fell in, but I managed to pull myself up in time before my whole body could fall.

I heard a voice now and I held my breath tightly, looking up from where I fell from fearfully. Zach passed, not even looking in my direction. He disappeared from view after a few moments. I was about to let out a sigh of relief when Drew, the one with the switchblade, came out. My stomach tightened, and I silently begged him not to look down.

He didn't. He continued following Zach, and my eyes bulged with disbelief. Since when had I become the luckiest girl on earth? I waited a few moments until I was sure they were gone before climbing to my feet. My ankle throbbed painfully and I hissed in pain.

Okay, so maybe I wasn't the luckiest. But a twisted ankle was better than being cut with a switchblade. I forced myself to ignore the pain in my ankle, and climb back to the flat top of the other rock where I had fallen from. My ankle protested as I slipped once or twice, but I kept going.

Slowly.

I went back the way I had come from, hunched over, gripping rocks for support so all my weight wasn't on my injured ankle. My heart was pounding with adrenaline and anticipation. Those two could return at any time…

I came back to the crevice where the hidden area was and wondered for a split second if I should hide, or try to go back to where the class was.

"Found you!"

I startled gasp left my lips and I twisted on my good heel to come face-to-face with Zach. I relaxed slightly.

That was, until he started reaching into his pocket.

Without thinking, I kneed him in the crotch as hard as I could. He shouted in pain, bending over. I panicked, not knowing what to do. I saw he was reaching for his pocket again, so I did the thing I found I was best at.

I punched him.

He fell to the ground unconscious. I stared at him for a moment in wonder, then to my fist, in horror.

I had to stop punching people! I didn't have to resort to violence every time! And I had actually knocked someone out this time! I could have seriously hurt him. Inner evil me, looking proud, patted my shoulder for knocking him out, but angel Daphne scolded me, telling me to check him. I bent down to see that he hadn't landed on a rock that was jutting out, but found him uninjured for the most part.

I sucked in a deep breath of air when I realized Drew had probably heard Zach's cry. Quickly, I jumped down into the crevice. My ankle stung, but I did my best to ignore the throbbing pain. I moved slowly backwards, keeping an eye on the opening of the crevice above me. I trailed my hand along the moist wall, making sure I didn't fall.

I felt the corner, and slowly turned myself, still keeping an eye out for any motion above me. I felt safer now, out of view from the crevice. Hopefully, now they wouldn't be able to find me—

I froze, bumping into something too warm to be stone behind me. I felt a chuckle reverberate through his chest.

"Found you."

I felt my hair being yanked and I bit my tongue to keep from shouting out. I was yanked into the beach area, my ankle growing worse and worse with each step. Drew continued dragging me, oblivious to my pain.

I was pushed against the rock, and pinned there by Drew's knee between my legs. I scowled at him, trying to not let fear get the best of me. Drew scowled back, tapping his switchblade angrily.

"Where's Zach? Damn it," he muttered, glancing at the way we came.

My heart skipped a beat, and I tried to keep a straight face. I didn't want to know what he'd do if he found out I knocked out his friend. But I was also terrified that Zach would wake up and come in here.

"How did you get in here?" I whispered, knowing Drew had walked by me earlier.

He raised an eyebrow. "Did you think you were the only one who knew of the place or something?"

I shook my head. No, I knew others would know of it… I just assumed these guys didn't. I sighed inwardly. Assuming never led to good things.

"There are two ways in," Drew told me, jerking his head towards the other side of the enclosed space. "Have you ever heard of jumping?"

I blanched, realizing how ignorant I was. Of course people could just drop in here! It wasn't covered! It was a stupid idea to come in here if there was only one entrance. How could I have been such an idiot? I felt like I was going to cry.

The feeling of cool metal against my skin snapped me out of my reverie. My eyes widened as I locked gazes with Drew. He smirked, his eyes glowing with excitement.

"I'm not waiting for Zach," he told me, even though I could care less. "But I don't know what to do to you yet…"

I tried my best not to show him any weakness, but the switchblade pressed to my throat terrified me. "Please, don't kill me," I whispered, finding it hard to breathe.

Drew chuckled. "I'm not going to kill you."

I relaxed the slightest bit, but the blade was still pressed against my neck. I watched Drew cautiously, trying to control my breathing.

"But I can't say I won't hurt you."

With that he started to move the switchblade up, and he pressed down a little harder right under my jaw. I flinched away as pain shot through the spot where he had now broken skin.

The blade was withdrawn and I let out a shaky breath, but it turned into a cry when I felt a hard slap to my face. Drew glared at me.

"That was for punching me yesterday."

I raised a hand to my cheek in shock, unable to say anything. It throbbed painfully as I rubbed it. Drew grinned down at me.

"You know… you really shouldn't wear strings."

I looked at him in confusion. What did he mean? I wasn't wearing strings… One of his hands went to my neck. I winced, preparing to be strangled, but to my surprise, nothing happened. He returned his hand to his side, his mouth smirking.

Suddenly I felt my bikini topped being ripped away from me. I cried out in surprise, immediately covered myself with my arms. Drew frowned at me.

"The point of taking it off wasn't so you could cover yourself."

I glared at him, tears now prickling at the corners of my eyes. "You're an asshole," I spat, clutching my arms tighter against my chest. I didn't mean to curse, but…it came out that way.

There was suddenly a shout from the entrance. Drew's head snapped towards it, a smirk appearing on his face. "That must be Zach. Finally he figured out where we are."

I froze, my heart dropping into my gut. Was he serious? How was I supposed to get out of this now? My chest tightened, and I blinked rapidly, making sure no tears spilled down my face.

Drew glanced at me with a frown. "I'll be right back, stay here… Well, you don't have anywhere else to go, so I guess saying that is pointless."

He headed back towards the entrance and when he disappeared from view, I began sprinting to the other side of the enclosed area. I spotted the small cave I had refused to go in the day before. However, know it was my only chance of safety. I dropped to my hands and knees and crawled in.

I could barely fit. It looked so much bigger from the outside. I managed to squeeze my way a fairy far distance from the entrance. I pulled my knees up to my chest, cursing myself about not grabbing my bikini top before running.

I put my head onto my knees, trying to calm my racing heart. What was I going to do? I felt so… helpless for once. I was trapped and no one knew where I was, and there were two guys after me because I had punched them yesterday.

I really needed to stop punching people! And getting myself caught in such dangerous positions!

I couldn't even attack them without my bikini top. There was no way I was going to leave my chest uncovered. Besides, they had switchblades. It was too dangerous to try to attack them.

There was really nothing I could do.

New tears prickled at my eyes and I rubbed them furiously, hating feeling this helpless. I never thought this would happen to me. It always happened in movies, but I never thought it'd actually happen to anyone I knew in real life, let alone me. I always had Sabrina or someone else to watch over me. Even though I felt annoyed by it sometimes, I really appreciated it. I really wanted to stop being the damsel and be the hero for once, like Sabrina, Puck, and Mr. Firay were.

I drew my knees closer to me, my body shaking. I hadn't realized how cold and wet I was. It felt like I had gone swimming.

"You," a voice growled.

I immediately looked up to see Drew glaring at me.

"Get out here. Right now."

"No," I responded, staring at him with wide-eyes. Was he crazy? There was no way in hell I was leaving!

He growled in frustration. "You know, I do have a friend who can easily fit inside there and grab you."

My eyes widened the slightest bit. "No you don't."

Drew chuckled. "Oh, yes I do. He's only about five minutes away from here. In fact, if you want I'll give him a call now…"

I couldn't tell if he was bluffing or not, so I stayed silent. He sighed and a moment later I heard him talking to someone.

"Yeah, I need your help. It's the cave again. Yeah. I don't know why they always hide in there. Okay, I'll meet you by the entrance."

I listened very carefully. Was he faking the phone call? And what did he mean again? Did he chase girls in here often?

Drew ducked down again, looking in at me. "I'll be right back. You can come out if you want, I'll be by the entrance."

He disappeared, leaving me staring after him in disbelief. He wasn't kidding. New tears formed at my eyes and I quietly sobbed into my knees. This was unbelievable. Why me?

How pathetic could I be? I was hiding in a cave, topless, and crying. I smiled in wry amusement. I guess I was like a cave women or something.

Footsteps outside the cave sent my heart flying, and my body palpitating in terror. Why so fast? I hadn't even thought of something that could help me in the least? Another sob escaped my lips.

"Daphne?"

My head snapped up so fast it cricked. I ignored it though, staring in incredulity at the man standing before me. It wasn't Drew. Or Zach.

It was Mr. Firay.

He was peering at me, his expression relieved. He was dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt, but looked soaked.

"How?" I whispered, tears flooding my eyes again. "How did you find me?"

"The man passed out and your flip-flops were good clues," Mr. Firay responded, a small smile on his lips. "Come out here, quick."

I shook my head violently. "I c-can't!"

"Why not? Are you hurt?"

"No," I responded, shaking my head again. "My, er… My bikini top… is out there."

Mr. Firay froze for a minute, and then I saw him looking around. After a moment, he took off the hoodie he was wearing and threw it to me. It landed directly in front of me and I snatched it up. It was soaked, but I didn't care.

"Put that on."

"Look away," I requested, really not caring at this point whether he did or not.

He did though, and I quickly slipped on the hoodie, pulling it over me securely. Feeling much better, I crawled forwards, and out of the cave. Immediately Mr. Firay pulled me to my feet.

I gazed at him for a moment, feeling the overwhelming urge to hug and kiss him, but I fought it back— with very much difficulty.

He inhaled sharply. "What happened to your jaw?"

"Um, switchblade," I muttered, adverting my eyes.

"Daphne," Mr. Firay groaned, running a hand through his dripping wet hair.

It made me wonder how long he had been searching for me for his hair to be so wet. My eyes came across my bikini top lying in the sand. I made a move to grab it, but became paralyzed with fear. What would happen if Drew came back and I wasn't close to Mr. Firay?

Swallowing, I grabbed onto the back of Mr. Firay's t-shirt. He looked at me curiously and I felt my eyes well up again. I blinked them away as quickly as possible.

"Daphne, what's wrong?" Mr. Firay asked, his eyes soft and his voice quiet. "What happened?"

"Nothing," I responded, rubbing my eyes. "I'm just scared… There was nothing I could do, Mr. Firay! I thought I was just going to be stuck in that cave until he came to get me out! I thought no one knew where I was and no one was going to come help me, and to make it worse I was topless and I couldn't do anything. I was helpless, and scared."

I wasn't sure if he understood the last few things I said, because I had started to cry by then. I felt Mr. Firay pull me into a warm and protective embrace. I didn't even think to be embarrassed. I clung onto him, still sobbing. He rubbed my back soothingly.

"I'm sorry I didn't find you earlier," Mr. Firay said quietly.

"It's not your fault," I sniffed, gaining control of my sobs.

Mr. Firay pulled away from me, his face an unreadable expression. I stared at him for a moment, trying to decide what it meant, but found it nearly impossible. Mr. Firay ran a hand through his hair.

"Come on, we've got to get back before you get in some serious trouble."

"Please don't tell anyone what happened," I begged, grabbing onto his shirt again. "Please… Matt."

His eyes widened in surprise and he opened his mouth, but no words came out. Eventually he just nodded.

"I won't tell anyone," he promised. "I'll tell them you got lost or something… but we should still go."

I nodded. "Okay, thank you."

"Don't mention it," Mr. Firay muttered, turning towards the entrance.

Realization swept over me and I grabbed Mr. Firay's shirt again. He halted, throwing me an amused glance.

"Now what?"

"How'd you get in here?" I whispered.

"I heard you crying, so I just jumped from… Daphne, what's wrong?"

My expression must have made Mr. Firay worried, because he looked over his shoulder and looked back with a confused expression. And then we heard voices.

"They're back!" I cried in a whisper.

"Who are?"

"The men who are after me," I told him, my eyes widening.

Mr. Firay didn't seem fazed, in fact he looked eager. He pushed me behind him completely, and stood still, waiting for the men to come into view. In a few seconds, three men appeared. Zach, Drew, and the new small guy.

So Drew really wasn't lying.

Drew narrowed his eyes at Mr. Firay. "Who are you?"

"Your worst nightmare," Mr. Firay responded, cracking his knuckles. "Which one of you cut this poor girls jaw?"

Drew's gaze hardened. "That would be me."

Before I could protest, Mr. Firay was in front of Drew, sending a fist flying into his face. My jaw dropped as Drew fell a few steps back, but not down. Since when did men stay conscious after being punched by Mr. Firay?

There was a glint of metal and I noticed Drew had the switchblade out again. I took a step backwards, shaking my head.

"M-Mr. Firay," I croaked, watching the three men close in on him.

Mr. Firay sent me a smirk. "Remember, Daphne, I was gang leader for a reason."

The first one down was the new guy. He didn't even stand a chance against Mr. Firay's fist. I almost missed Mr. Firay's fist landing in Zach's face, and Zach fell backwards, another one hit K.O.

Drew swung the knife out. To my astonishment, it actually came in contact with Mr. Firay's arm.

"Mr. Firay!" I cried, shocked.

But that's when I realized he had let it get him on purpose. Mr. Firay yanked the switchblade out from Drew's hand and turned it onto him. Drew's face immediately whitened, and he stepped back.

"W-wait," Drew stammered, holding up his hands.

Mr. Firay pressed the switchblade against Drew's throat. I gasped, staring with wide-eyes.

"Mr. Firay! What are you…?" I trailed off, unsure what he was planning.

"I think you should have a reminder of what you did tonight," Mr. Firay said in a dangerously low voice.

He dragged the blade up Drew's neck slowly— the same way Drew had done to me earlier— and rested it just below his jaw. With one quick slice, blood appeared and I gasped, covering my mouth. It wasn't a deep wound, but it still surprised me.

A fist was sent into Drew's face, and he fell to the ground. Mr. Firay turned around, an amused smirk on his face. When his eyes landed on mine, his smirk automatically dropped. I stared back at Mr. Firay, caught between awe and horror. He turned and looked at the three boys now unconscious on the ground.

"Daphne, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I responded quickly. "Your arm—"

"Don't worry about it," Mr. Firay said cutting me off. "Damn it." Mr. Firay ran a hand down his face. "How could it almost happen again?"

Let what happen again? I opened my mouth to question him, but I realized now was definitely not the time to do so.

Afraid the men might wake up again, I jogged up to Mr. Firay, grabbing his arm. Immediately he ripped it out of my grasp. Slightly hurt, I looked at him with wide eyes. He glared at me for a split-second before softening his gaze.

"Sorry, Daphne," he murmured, his hair falling in his face, covering his eyes.

My heart was beating once more, but not due to that fact that I was afraid. And it wasn't due to the fact that I was happy. It was Mr. Firay's expression.

It was one full of grief and regret.

**A/N. **_**There. Some Daphne in distress. ( Please don't be mad at me) Some MS to the rescue. Some plot... That should make you happy, right? :D Comment?**_

Replies:

**Warisha: **XD You can try to find out. Hee hee hee. Lol, I do too. I know a friend who's not related to me at all, but can finish my sentences. It's weird. Thanks! Lol, true. Hahahaha, that's good. That's really funny. XD Of course, I need to pick a new winner each week, right? But I really liked your answer. :D

**ANannyMouse: **Lol, okay. Thanks! That's good. Lolol. I can relate to Daphne too, so that's why I gave that chapter that specific title. Lol, of course! A chapter without him was terrible. I had to bring him back. Yeah, poor him. Lol, that might be so. (I'm saying 'lol' too much!) Thanks! _Haha _(Yes, a different word!), that's true!And thanks again -I really liked your review! ^^

**Cat: **Haha, well, I told you all that this week was my five day update thing, silly! You're not stupid. Trust me. People who are stupid think books are stupid. XD Oh, sorry about that. But you know, I think MS is really the only guy she's ever liked (well, in this story), so she should be all cute and flustered and all that, right? Thanks!

**Fanficlover: **Thanks! I hope this chapter was somewhat romantic. :3

**TheyCallMeRed: **Haha, I'm glad she's back too. She's a fun character. …A dog bed? Really?...that's original…XD I love it. PS. Yes, I friggin LOVE Artemis. But I have to admit –I really like Apollo. I picture him as a really handsome, 20-year old looking Puck with abs. XDDDDD It's like *sigh* That's sooo hot, hahaha! PPS. That seems as long as I make my BBQs…yummy! **Your Second Review: **Haha. XD Volleyball was hard for me at the beginning, but I guess I'm okay at it now.

Guys…I actually think I may be able to get Sabrina and Puck in the next chapter :O Maybe. Hopefully. I'm excited.

Hopefully tomorrow I update! Maybe not. The world may never know until you see "For The First Time; Update 1-31-12" in the SG archive.

~Lara


	31. Chapter 31:

**EDIT: OMPUCKINGLORD! I HAVE OVER 300 REVIEWSSS! OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMGEE:**

**EDIT AGAIN: YOU CRAZY WARISHA! XD And you too, Red. Both of you assumed to be the 300th, but Warisha was. But, you two get to pick a prize: A one-shot dedicated to you or spoilers for this story. And Red (TheyCallMeRed), it's** Lara, **not Laura. **

**A/N.**HOLY FRIG. Last night I went to sleep, the total amount of reviews was 281. Now waking up at 6 AM, there's 293. And now there's more. EPIC EPIC EPIC EPIC! That's like, 12 reviews within 9 hours or so! :D Thank you thank you thank you! This flood of reviews really made me happy. Keep this up, and I might just give that 6-day-update without wanting to win Elli's BSGS2011! ^^

This chapter was hard to write. :/ I didn't know what to do with their personalities -make them OOC because they're older, or let them keep their personalities from the book. So, sorry if this isn't filling. People have requested for these characters, and I feel sorry for -somewhat- ignoring them. You should know who I'm talking about. :D

Again -sorry if I keep nagging- but Elli's **BSGS2011 is almost over! D: Vote** **please?**I really don't mind if you have another story special to you -it was amazing being nominated anyway! ^^

Also, sorry if this chapter seems...flat. Or not as good as usual. I wrote this yesterday night because I didn't know if I'd have time to write after chorus practice at 4. Sorry about that. But after the chapter, give me any suggestions to make it more funny or just better!

One more thing -I'm sorry I can't reply to all you anon. reviewers! There are way too many, and so little time (I just got home at six, and I wasn't done with the chapter until 7:30 or so)! But please know that I LOVE ALL OF THEM. Seriously, I do. (By the way, Warisha, I thought I had established that they're comments didn't affect me? :D I forgive your bro anyways) **Thanks.**

Here's chapter 31!

**Warning: This chapter is really rated T because Puck's perverted. And Veronica is OOC (like she was in that chapter before, but much more so).**

**Chapter 31: There's a First: Observant Adults  
><strong>  
>"You're oddly silent."<p>

I turned around and blinked at Ariana. "Oh? I'm just thinking."

"About Mr. Firay?" she teased, nudging me in the shoulder.

"No I'm not." Okay, lie. I was thinking of him -yes- but not in the 'he's so hot' sense. More of the 'what happened' matter. We had come back from the cave in silence after he had knocked out the three men. His expression that day had made me curious. Why had he looked so...sad? So solemn? It actually hurt to see him make that face after he had knocked out Drew and Zach. And what did he mean by 'again'? Hopefully, I would get the chance to ask him on Monday. Because he hadn't come with us on the bus like the rest of the teachers, he had driven back in his own car.

"_Oye_! Daphne!" Ariana snapped her fingers in front of me. "You got lost in space again."

"Sorry," I murmured.

She suddenly looked at me with concern. "Daphne, what's wrong?"

"N-nothing!" I lied, my face heating up. I didn't want her to be concerned for me. She didn't really need to know what happened at the beach.

Ariana pursed her lips at me. "Hmm, could it be that you and Mr. Firay were doing something that was put on hold because you guys had to come back to the hotel?" She winked suggestively.

"What? No!" My face flamed.

"You guys were out there for a pretty long time...oooh! Did you guys have sex in that rock place we found the other day?"

"No, no, no! Ariana, no!" Oh gosh, she was so embarrassing. Ms. Dayscall turned in her seat towards us with a raised eyebrow, seeing Ariana let out a cackle. She turned back to the front of the bus when Ariana quieted down.

"Sorry, _amiga_, but you're such a fun tease," she said, ruffling up my hair.

"Everyone seems to say that nowadays."

"Even Mr. Firay? Ooh, what kind of tease? Strip tease?"

Kill me now.

The bus stopped on my street right then, and I silently thanked the Lord.

I almost ran of the bus. "Bye, Ariana, see you Monday!" I called quickly. She sent me an amused grin through the bus window as I ran down the block for my house.

My house wasn't far from the bus stop, so the run -or fast walk, however you see it- took me only about three or so minutes. I looked into the alley that I had first encountered Matt in, and thankfully, I saw no gangsters. I ran up the steps of the apartment and knocked on the door, adjusting my backpack strap. I breathed in deeply, preparing to brace myself for my mom. Hopefully she had cookies ready. I opened the door slightly, then all the way when I heard shuffling in the living room.

"Mom! I'm home-"

I froze, my skin tingling.

Then, I looked down at my chest.

I had been shot.

By a Nerf gun.

Only one explanation, of course.

"Puck?" I asked, a grin forming on my face.

Suddenly, a figure tumbled from the side of the couch, shooting wildly. "Thy enemy has spotted me!" He did a few flips to show off, then projected himself in the air until he landed on his feet. He stood up, and pretended to blow the steam off his gun. His green eyes sparkled with mischief. "What's up, sister-in-law?"

My grin spread widely. "Puck!" I hugged him tightly. "What are you doing here?"

"I assume you mean what are 'we' doing here?" a voice commented from the kitchen.

I let out a surprised gasp. "Sabrina!" I practically launched myself at her.

"Whoa! And I thought Mom said you were all mellow now," she laughed, hugging me tightly. "How are you, little sister?"

"You know only you and Puck can bring out my inner me. And I'm doing great! How's the police work?" I asked excitedly, practically jumping.

She winked. "It's a secret remember? But in Daphne-secret-code, it's gravy. Hard, but gravy."

Puck put his arm on my head. "Not as hard as flying almost 300 people from place to place every day, of course."

Sabrina scoffed. "My job is just as important as yours. I have the lives of the world practically in my hands!"

"Well, I have the lives of rich people in 'my' hands. Flying an airplane isn't as easy as you'd think. Learning to use my wings were easy -learning all these stupid buttons and procedures was a bunch of bullelephants."

"Bullelephants?" Sabrina echoed.

Puck winked at me. "We still keep in contact, Grimm. Unlike you."

Sabrina's eyes down casted. "I'm sorry I haven't talked to you in awhile, Daphne."

I beamed at her. "That's all right! I love surprise visits!"

"So, how was this beach trip Mom told us about?" Sabrina asked, taking a seat at the dining room table.

Speak of the devil, Mom popped her head out of the kitchen, the aroma of cookies filling the room. "Daphne! Aw, you're back! I missed you so much! So how was it? Any cute guys get to see you in your bikinis?"

"Mom!" I said, turning red.

Puck twitched slightly. "Bikini?" This was the only flaw with having Puck as my brother-in-law. He took the protective, older brother role seriously. The last boyfriend I dated was threatened not to speak to me again after Puck had seen him at a party with a girl. Much later, I had to explain to my dear brother that the girl had been his cousin.

"Mom replaced all my one-pieces with bikinis, Puck," I said, turning my nose up at my mom. "If you want to twitch at someone, twitch at her."

"Mom, you know how much I don't like Daphne wearing bikinis, right?" Puck said, used to calling my mom as his own. Of course, since Titania died, she really was his only mom.

"Well, don't you think I know how much you 'do' like Sabrina in bikinis?" she replied back smartly. My sister turned red.

Puck saw her blush and smirked at my mom. "That's different. She's my wife after all."

Even though they had been married for about three years now, I always had to make an 'Aww' sound. "Gosh, you guys become cuter every time I see you!"

Puck stared at me. "I am not...cute."

"Sure you are!" Sabrina smirked at him, ruffling his hair. "That's why I married you right?" It seemed that my sister was getting the upper hand.

Puck composed himself again before saying with a smirk. "No, you married me because I was best in bed and best as boyfriend."

Sabrina's face flamed. "I did not! And we didn't make love until we were married!"

My mom practically squealed at me. "Aw, she said love! Not sex! That's adorable!"

"From what you remember," Puck winked at Sabrina, seeming oblivious to my mom's comment. "You have gotten drunk before..."

_Smack_. "I think I would know if I had ever gotten with you before, Puck!"

"Maybe I sprinkled forgetful dust on you."

"You're annoying, you know that?"

Puck leaned forward and kissed her lips. "You love it, babe."

"Gosh, you two are quite the bickering couple," I commented, putting my hands under my chin.

They blinked, as if realizing Mom and I were there. They smiled sheepishly. "Forgot you two were there..."

Mom clapped her hands. "You two are like little kittens! But come on into the kitchen -I made cookies."

Puck and I automatically swiveled our heads towards the kitchen.

"Cookies?" I echoed.

Cookies were the only real thing my mom could cook, and, I'm not exaggerating when I say this, but they are awesomesauce.

"Charge!" Puck yelled, both of us running for the kitchen. We took the cookies eagerly from the plate.

Mom laughed as she entered the kitchen with Sabrina. "They'll always be kids on the inside...that warms my heart!"

Sabrina shook her head, smiling, and took a seat next to me at the table. "So, mom, when are Dad and Basil coming home?" she asked, taking a bite out of Puck's cookie. He let out a grunt in protest, but did nothing under Sabrina's intense glare.

"Aren't you scared of getting mononucleosis by sharing, 'Brina?" I asked, looking as she and Puck shared a glass of milk.

She snorted. "No. I haven't gotten sick in years. And Puck's prone to diseases...except 'books' of course."

"I'm telling you, I get rashes and stuff around them!" he exclaimed.

"Then tell me, how did you manage to read that Pilot's Handbook without breaking out into hives?"

I laughed. "Yeah, Puck? Why?"

"I...don't know."

Mom played along. "Gasp! The Great Trickster doesn't know something?"

"I forgive you because you called me the Great," Puck smirked.

Mom rolled her eyes, ignoring him, answering Sabrina's earlier question. "Dad and Basil are coming back in a month or so."

"Why were they gone so long?" I wondered.

Mom waved her at me offhandedly. "Your father says his boss suddenly gave him another long project to do, wanting him stationed in New Jersey for awhile longer. Also, there's some girl Basil's interested in, and he doesn't want to leave."

"That sounds highly unlikely." Puck smirked at Mom. "Better keep your eyes on that Henry -he might be having an affair!"

She rolled her eyes. "He wouldn't. If so, I'd chop off his-"

"Mom!" Sabrina exclaimed, quickly shooting a glance at me. "Daphne's in the room!"

I snorted. "I know what she was going to say, Sabrina. She'd chop off his-"

"Daphne!"

"-arms."

"Oh. Never mind."

"See?" Mom gestured towards me. "Arms."

"What were thinking about, 'Brina?" Puck nudged my sister. "Something naughty?"

Sabrina turned away from us. "Puck's been frying my brain with his suggestive talk. Blame him." Puck snickered.

"I have no idea what she's talking about," he said innocently.

"Oh, stop bickering. It was cute for awhile, now it's boring." Mom picked up the cookie plate."Now, one last cookie! Who wants it?"

Sabrina looked at Mom with a fearful expression. "Oh, no. Why'd you have to say-"

"I'm gonna eat it!" I shouted, reaching for the plate. The cookie was almost in my clutches when Puck let out a distracting screech. I felt the world spin upside down, and found myself staring up at the ceiling, my back towards the floor. Then, I felt pressure on my stomach, the weight nearly crushing me.

Mom and Sabrina looked at the ground. Puck was sitting on top of me, nibbling at the last cookie. Mom gasped, "Oh, Daphne!"

Suddenly, all the weight was gone, and I was crushed in an embrace instead. "Oh, good! You're okay!"

I glanced out of the corner of my eye and saw Sabrina practically pounding her fists into Puck's chest. "You could've killed her!"

"But I didn't!" he wheezed as Sabrina punched him again. "Geez!"

I laughed at their expressions. "Sabrina, it's okay! I didn't die, so I forgive him."

"Forgive him? If I was the one who was sat on, I'd swear off his kisses for a month!"

Puck's jaw dropped open. "Whoa, what?"

Sabrina ignored him, sighing at me. "I can't be as nice as you."

My chest puffed up. "Without people like me, the world would've ended years ago."

Mom smiled at me. "That's true. The world would've also ended if we didn't have good, charming men like Mr. Firay."

Sabrina and Puck blinked. "Who?"

Mom laughed. "Oh, I didn't tell you two? Daphne has a charming home economics teacher. Oh! Puck, did you know Mustardseed became Daphne's teacher? Guess how surprised I was-" Suddenly, her phone rang. She picked it up, oblivious to our blank stares. Mom glanced at the screen and smiled sheepishly. "I have a business call. I'll be right back." Then, she walked out of the room, taking her phone with her.

Puck bore his eyes into mine. "My brother's...you're teacher?"

"Did Mom just call him charming?" Sabrina said.

I looked at them, mimicking their same expressions. "I...I think so."

Puck stood up. "When the heck did that happened?"

"At the beginning of the school year, obviously. You two are brothers. Shouldn't you have known that?" I asked.

"I haven't talked to Mustardseed in almost four years," he deadpanned.

"What? Why? How come I didn't know this?" Sabrina demanded.

"After my real mom died, he just drifted away. He never called me, or sent letters. That's why he wasn't at our wedding." He muttered to himself, "I had hoped he'd at least tell me when he got a job..."

"He's my Home Economies teacher, actually. I don't know if you've ever tried his cooking, but -don't tell him I said this- it's really good."

"Hmm, I might have to pay a visit to him then. When I get another break from work, that is," Puck said thoughtfully.

"Now spill."

"Huh?" I blinked, staring at my sister.

She rolled her eyes. "Daphne, I'm not stupid. Even though I never wanted it, I've inherited the 'blood of the detective', as Granny used to call it." She trailed her finger across my jaw. "You have a cut on your jaw, Daphne. It also goes a little further down your neck. What happened during the beach trip?"

I stared at her. How did she manage to see that? "Well that's new: _observant _adults," I commented, trying to steer the question away.

Puck snorted. "Daphne, you know that when Sabrina's into something, she won't stop until she gets what she wants...ooh, that can be interpreted into two ways."

Sabrina elbowed him in the chest. "Shut up. Now, Daphne, what happened?" Her eyes softened, and she took my hand.

My eyes down casted to the floor. "Um, these two guys pulled a switchblade on me..."

"_A switchblade?_" both Sabrina and Puck exclaimed, staring at me. "Are you nuts?"

"Aren't those illegal?" my sister choked out.

Puck said to her, "Only if they're wider than the person's palm, that is. Was it, Daphne?"

"Um, yeah." Hopefully they wouldn't ask how I managed to escape.

I saw Sabrina's eyes harden. "If I ever find the brats who did this to you..."

"...they will have a _Grimm _ending. Get it? Ha!" Puck chuckled to himself.

Sabrina shot him a look, and he rubbed her back. "I'm trying to lighten the subject, Sabrina. I don't like it when you're tense."

Sabrina closed her eyes, and leaned against him. "You're lucky I love you."

I smiled at the pair. They were too adorable... I frowned. It must be nice to be able to go out in public, holding hands and being able to show affection. If Mr. Firay and I got together, we wouldn't be able to do that... Wait, what am I thinking? I turned red, and looked away, hoping the two wouldn't see my blush.

I could almost feel Puck smirking. "Too intimate for you, Daphne? What if we had sex in this very room right now?"

"Excuse me?"

We looked up, and saw my mom with a disapproving look on her face.

"If you two are going to make love, at least use a condom."

"Um…" I shifted uncomfortably in my seat.

Mom continued, oblivious to Sabrina's appalled face,"I want grandbabies in the future, though! And Daphne has to wear blacked out safety goggles and ear plugs while you two are at it."

I think dying right now is something Sabrina and I wouldn't mind right now.

**A/N. **VERONICA'S TOO OCC! AAH! AH! AAHHH!

Sorry if this wasn't my best work. :/ I worked on this yesterday night (10:00, and I was already feeling drowsy), and during the trip to school, and after school. It wasn't much time, but I'll edit this soon. Promise.

Um, two more days of the five day update! Do you want me to update tomorrow and Thursday, or Thursday and Friday? Oh, wait, I'm going to be in Orlando Friday...nevermind. xD Hopefully I update on Sunday, when we get back. We're going to Disney World for Kian's birthday (he's _so _excited *sarcasm* I don't know what's wrong with Disney, but he says he'd rather go there than Atlantic City's aquarium...)! Yay! ^^ I can't believe he's turing 7...*sniffles* Soon, he'll be bringing home a girl...*sniffle*

Anyways, thanks SO much for your support in everything! ^^ Nominating me in Elli's story, reviewing this, and giving feedback other than "OMFG! LOVE LOVE UPDATE UPDATE!" makes me _really _happy. XD I think I'll give you guys a sneak peek of an upcoming chapter (not next though, close-ish). Dialogue only:

"What were your reasons for fighting people?"

"I was challenged. I was never the one to start a fight. Provoking people is a different story though."

"But, why?"

"Because I thought fighting was the best thing ever when I was younger. It excited me, it made me feel alive, and there was no one that could stop me."

"What do you mean?"

"My mom wasn't around. And all my relatives lived too far away to even know what I was doing."

"You just said your mom wasn't around when you joined the gang. But the time you were giving me a ride home you said your mom died, which was only two years ago. Did you lie about that?"

"What? No! Do you honestly think that I'd lie about something like that?"

"Then what did you mean?"

"I meant they were so busy with work they were never home. Why would you think I'd lie about my mom dying?"

"Well you did lie about that other thing…"

"Daphne, I'm sorry I lied to you."

"Do you promise not to lie to me again?"

:D I'm evil. Of course, everything -EVERYTHING- is going to be revealed before chapter 40. Maybe chapter 35 or so. So...yeah! ^^

~Lara


	32. Chapter 32:

**A/N.** *laughter erupts from Lara Volcano* BAHAHA! My gosh -you all are so funny. XD I love all your reviews! They were either really honest with the chapter, or really funny. I can't stop laughing at Cat's...lolol. XD Ah...

Anyways, sorry again for OOC Veronica. As you can see 2/3rds of this story has OOC characters, but for some reason, you all keep reading. XD

In an hour and a quarter (maybe less), I got +14 Reviews. MY GOD. And I can say that because I'm so happy. THANK YOOOOUUU! That's friggin epic. Like, Pucktastic... Lol...

Puck: It was only because of _me_ that you got so many reviews, you lazily shabby writer. Face it -I'm hot chiz.

XD He'd totally say that. -^

Okay, big notice to those anonymous reviewers: **Please review once every chapter. ***stares down Cat, Warisha, and Red* You guys review 2-5 times every chapter. Really, I only need one. :3 And I don't think it's fair to the other authors who have like, no reviews. I can understand that you like/hate a chapter very much from just one review. But if FF accidentally sends the review before you finish writing it, then that's okay. It's just...I don't need 36 reviews from one person for _one _chapter. Asides that, I really am grateful that you've all gotten me to 316 or so reviews. At this rate. I might have 325 or less reviews before ch. 33 is posted...and that's really good. :D

Um, what else do I feel the need to blab about...

**Oh my gosh! FIELD DAAY! **It was epic...at first. I didn't like the middle, and end of the day much. At the beginning, we got to do this game called "Sponge Brigade" and I would soak up a sponge and pass it behind me, and the last person would squeeze it into the bucket until it was full. We lost. But it was so funny to see all my friends' angry looks when I soaked them with the sponge 'accidentally' lol. They dumped the on me and Casey. Lol, that was the only part I really liked about Field Day. Also, we got to each ice pops. Those were the only two I liked, really. :) Also tug-of-war. But nothing else, really. XD So tomorrow...Book Fair! YAY! XD

(Again -too many anon. reviews *stares at Cat, Red, and Warisha*, so I can't reply to all. But again, I appreciate them...even if some review too many times :D)

These next few chapters will be light. No Puck and Sabrina for awhile though. :3 I just thought you guys would like to read about them again. Not sure if there's going to be some big fluff between Daphne and MSeed (because MS stands for Multiple Sclerosis, and I don't imagine MSeed like that, his new abbreviation is MSeed. Get it? Like MC, but MSeed? Har har har), but there will be lots of funny moments...and you get to meet two wonderful little girls in the next chapter. ;D

Also:big round of** applause for Warisha and Red for being the 300****th**** reviewer(s)! **Actually, Warisha was the 300th, but I felt bad for Red because she said _she _was, so both are. Again –one-shot or spoiler. Way I can give you a spoiler:

***If you have a Twitter, DeviantArt, Wattpad, or other networking site that I may also have an account on, I can tell you there. I'd say Facebook, but that's…weird. :3 Of course, if **_**you **_**want to, send me a message at 'Lara Dee', and identify if you're Red or Warisha. :D **

**Chapter 32: Ignorance –Both Blissful and Annoying**

"I still can't believe you got lost at the beach," Wendell said, cracking up yet again. "I mean, how can you get lost at a beach?"

"You just can," I snapped, stabbing my fork into my mashed potatoes.

"I don't think she minded," Ariana added, a small smirk on her face. "After all, Mr. Firay was sent out to find her, and he was gone for awhile."

I kept my mouth shut, trying not to be angry with them. They didn't know what had actually happened, nor did I plan on telling them, so it wasn't their fault. But their comments were getting irritating.

"So, what, are you and Firay dating now?" Wendell asked, frowning. "If I ever see you two smooching I swear I'll be sick."

"We aren't together," I snapped, flushing. "And in this time period, we don't say 'smooching'."

"Oh, come on, Daphne," Ariana started with a smirk. "You guys were gone a really long time."

"Drop it," I snapped, growing more and more aggravated.

Ariana opened her mouth to continue to tease me, but the lunch bell cut her off. A smug smirk slipped onto my face as I stood up, grabbing my bottle of water, and mixed myself in among the gaggle of students leaving the cafeteria. I heard Ariana call after me, but I ignored her, hurrying out.

I nearly ran all the way to Home EC, stopping by my locker to quickly grab my backpack. Before entering, I took a few deep breaths to regain my breath. What would Mr. Firay say if I was first to class instead of last or close to last for once? A smirk appeared on my face and I entered the room.

To my pleasure the room was empty except for Mr. Firay who sat at his desk, looking at a piece of paper. When he heard me, he looked up. Shock flitted across his face before a smirk slowly appeared.

"Well, Ms. Grimm, congratulations on being first for once."

"Shocking, isn't it?" I asked, a smile on my face now.

Mr. Firay chuckled, before suddenly turning serious. "How are you feeling?"

"Um, fine," I responded, frowning at his sudden change of tone. "How's the cut on your arm?"

"Don't worry about it," he said, shaking his head. "How's your ankle?"

I clenched my fist lightly, glowering at Mr. Firay. "My ankle's fine, it was only a little twist. And don't say 'don't worry about it' because obviously I'm going to worry if you're hurt too! Especially since it's my fault, Mr. Firay!"

He looked surprised. "But, Daphne, I'm fine—"

"That doesn't matter!" I argued. "I worry for you just as much as you worry for me."

"Who said I worried for you?"

I stared at him, my face going blank. He wasn't worried? Embarrassment washed over me and I felt my face grow hot. Why should he be worried, right? It was only my foolishness that let me to believe that—

Mr. Firay's laughter interrupted my thoughts and I glared at him. He continued laughing for a few minutes, shaking his head. I tried to keep my mouth shut and wait for him to be done, but I lost my patience.

"What?" I snapped.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, clearing his throat. "I was kidding. I do worry about you."

I felt relief wash through me, and then embarrassment again. If he worried about me then…

"You're reactions are just too cute."

I blushed again and scowled at him. I was about to retort, when a different thought popped into my head. A frown spread across my face as I debated on how to ask the question that I wanted to. Mr. Firay now was frowning at my expression.

"I didn't mean to offend you," he started, raising an eyebrow. "I was just—"

"What did you mean by 'again'?"

Mr. Firay looked at me in confusion. "What?"

"At the beach," I told him, now chewing on my bottom lip. "Um, after you… you know, took care of those guys, your expression changed and you said something along the lines of 'happen again'."

Mr. Firay's face darkened and he narrowed his eyes. "I didn't say anything like that."

I looked at him in shock. Why was he denying it? I had heard him say it clearly! And I couldn't forget the face he made… just thinking of it made my heart beast faster.

There was no way he could deny what had happened.

"I heard you!" I accused, taking a step closer to his desk. "You said it right after—"

"Daphne," Mr. Firay snapped in a quiet voice, then looked behind me.

I narrowed my eyes slightly, but glanced over my shoulder to see Wendell and another student entering the classroom. Wendell must have noticed something weird about my expression because his brow wrinkled in concern.

"I'm not letting this drop," I said quietly, giving Mr. Firay a meaningful look before walking over to Wendell.

"What's up?" he asked in a concerned voice.

"Nothing," I responded moodily, slumping onto my seat, and hanging my arms over the desk. "Just the usual with Mr. Firay."

Wendell looked at me alarmed, bringing his head closer to mine. "Daphne, did something happen with the gang? Are you hurt? Do I need to go beat up Firay?"

I smiled at Wendell's concern, and shook my head. "Nothing like that, thank you for worrying though."

"You don't need to thank me for worrying," Wendell pointed out. "It comes with the best friend's package."

I chuckled and Wendell grinned. He took a seat on the edge of my desk and looked down at me with a curious expression. Then his eyes narrowed slightly and my eyes met his.

"What?"

"This," he said, putting a finger to my jaw. "How did you get cut on your jaw?"

My eyes widened and I inhaled sharply, quickly putting my hand over the cut. Crap! I had forgotten about that! He was just as observant as Sabrina! Wendell's eyes narrowed even more.

"Did Mr. Firay—"

"No!" I snapped, irritated he would even think that. "I cut myself shaving."

"Uh-huh. So tell me, Daphne, since when did you have a beard?"

I pursed my lips, scowling at him. "You don't need to have a beard to shave. I did it as a precaution."

Wendell gave me a sarcastic look. "Okay, but I'm sure you know after you shave it grows back darker."

"Well I'll just continue to shave from now on," I responded simply, shrugging my shoulders. "I mean, it's not that big of a deal. I can just do it while I'm shaving my—"

"Daphne."

Wendell's azure eyes pierced into my duller hazel eyes and I fidgeted in my seat, uncomfortable under his gaze. He wasn't going to make me crack. I could go against his intense gaze. Wendell's eyes slightly narrowed and I mimicked the gesture. He wasn't going to make me crack…

"I just got into a little trouble at the beach!" I blurted out. "Now stop looking at me like that!"

Wendell smirked smugly for a moment before returning to a serious expression. "What happened?"

The bell went off, signaling the beginning of class. Wendell frowned as I shooed him away with my hand.

"I'll tell you later."

"You better," Wendell threatened before walking to his seat in the back of the class.

I sighed, turning in my seat to face the front of the classroom when Mr. Firay called for attention. I kept my eyes on him as he went through the attendance list, looking up every now and then to make sure a student was here or not. For some reason, he skipped my name. I shrugged; he already knew I was here, so that was probably why.

"So, it's already November," he started after he finished the attendance list, "do you know what that means?"

"It's only been two months since school started and we still have eight months of hell to go through?" someone said from the back of the class.

I smirked as the class laughed. Mr. Firay smiled at the person.

"High school isn't that bad."

"Yes it is," the same kid responded. I was tempted to turn around and see who it was, but I decided against it.

"We'll be learning something different from what we usually do. I think it's…unique from other teachers," Mr. Firay said, his eyes sweeping across the classroom. "Any guesses as to what it is?"

His gaze went past mine, but our eyes did not come in contact. I frowned, somewhat bemused. Where were the usual teasing smirks he sent me? Was he trying to ignore me?

"An essay about exotic foods?" Red asked, her hand in the air. For some reason, she decided to come with me to school today. Of course, she sat with Tom and his other friends, ditching me.

Mr. Firay shook his head. "No, we won't write any essays in here. Those are boring for you to write, and even more boring for me to read."

Some people laughed, but I kept a straight face. What if he was ignoring me? What did I do? Was he angry… or what? I began drumming my fingers on my desk subconsciously.

"Book report on some type of food?" another girl guessed.

"Nope."

"An extremely long lab-thing?" Wendell guessed and I turned to grin at him. He caught my gaze and grinned back.

"No, but we'll be doing those in the future," Mr. Firay responded, amusement in his voice. "It's something better."

The class stayed silent. I slowly raised my hand. As soon as it high enough to count as a hand raise, Mr. Firay spoke.

"We're going to learn how to make a three course meal. Staring with crab cakes."

I scowled for a moment, dropping my arm as a few students mumbled to themselves. He was definitely ignoring me. My stomach tightened uncomfortably, but not because we were going to be working with crabs.

"We're going to be learning how to make crab cakes for three whole weeks?" a girl named Charlotte asked, her eyes wide. "Why so long?"

Mr. Firay chuckled, a smirk slipping on his face.

Sure, smirk at her, but no, you can't smirk at Daphne, I thought, narrowing my eyes at him. Immediately I stopped, lowering my eyes to my desk. What was wrong with me? I was getting jealous because he was _smirking_ at someone? I groaned internally.

"It isn't a long time," Mr. Firay said to her. "Three weeks is just barely enough time. And crab cakes are only the main meal. We'll make the appetizer, the main dish, and the dessert. Also, we'll be making this all from scratch –meaning we'll be taking apart the crabs in order to start the actual cooking."

"I didn't bring any gloves," someone behind me pointed out.

"We'll only be doing the three-course on double lab days," Mr. Firay explained, the smirk on his face now replaced with a smile.

"Then what are we doing today?" the same student asked.

"Today you'll be coloring a skeleton of the crab, and doing the same for the muscles, and labeling them. Just so you'll be familiar when we –I guess the appropriate term is- dissect them."

A groan swept throughout the classroom. I nearly rolled my eyes. Coloring wasn't that bad. And the cook book Mr. Firay had given all of us probably talked about the crabs at some points in the book.

"Are we working by ourselves?"

Mr. Firay shook his head. "There aren't enough crabs –this _is_ New York, so you'll work in pairs of two."

Immediately everyone turned his or her head to their partner candidate. I looked over my shoulder to see Wendell staring at me determinedly. He raised and eyebrow and I smiled and nodded. I didn't know why he was asking. We were always lab partners.

"Would anyone like to volunteer to pass out the labs?"

Before anyone else could begin to lift their arm in the air, mine was already there. Mr. Firay's eyes finally met mine. Neither of us smiled. I swear I saw him sigh, which only made my stomach squirm into an even more uncomfortable position.

"Okay, Ms. Grimm, why don't you go grab them out of the supply room?"

I stood up, keeping my eyes on his. He slowly started to frown, but didn't look it away. Something caught the edge of my foot and I stumbled forwards, slamming my hands down on the edge of my desk and my neighbor's desk. A few chuckles erupted from behind me, and I quickly pushed myself up, keeping my head down in embarrassment. Why was I so clumsy?

Without looking back I dragged myself to the supply room, my face hot.

When I entered I went to the copy machine to grab the lab papers. When I was about to leave the room, an idea hit me. Smirking, I placed the piles of paper on the far corner of the counter where the sink was.

"Mr. Firay?" I called, sticking my head out of the doorway. "The papers aren't in the copier."

Mr. Firay looked over at me, a small sigh slipping from his lips. I narrowed my eyes at him, offended, as he made his way towards me. I moved out of the way so he could enter the room.

"Are you ignoring me?" I accused in a whisper as soon as he was out of sight from the class.

He shot me an amused look before opening the copier and looking in it. "I'm not ignoring you."

"Then why haven't you looked at me?"

A smirk was now playing across Mr. Firay's features. I relaxed slightly from the sight of the familiar smile. A wry smile made its way onto my face. I was getting excited over a smirk. I must be going crazy.

"You've been watching me?"

"The whole time!" I told him, my lips pursed.

Mr. Firay's eyes widened for a fraction of a second. I crossed my arms and looked at the ground.

"Was it because I mentioned that thing you said at the beach?"

"No."

Mr. Firay's sudden cold tone made me look back up in shock. His eyes were

glazed over as he stared at me. I returned his look, my eyes wide.

"It is because of it!"

"No, it's not," Mr. Firay responded, his eyes scanning around the room.

"Where'd you put the labs?"

"I'm not trying to make you angry, Mr. Firay," I explained, biting my lip. "I just wanted to know—"

"Drop it, Daphne," Mr. Firay snapped at me, finally locating the pile of papers I moved. "This conversation is over."

"But Mr. Firay—"

"Over," he repeated firmly.

"But I just…" I trailed off upon seeing Mr. Firay's serious expression.

"This is none of your business," he said before brushing past me with the papers in hand.

I blinked, shocked and a little hurt by his words. Obviously it wasn't my business, but couldn't he tell I was just worried about him? He didn't have to be such a jerk about it! I scowled, clenching my fists as I trudged back out to the classroom. Mr. Firay was now passing out the labs.

Wendell caught my attention and he raised an eyebrow in amusement, mouthing something I didn't quite catch. Knowing it was probably something teasing, I just rolled my eyes at him before slumping back down into my desk.

If Mr. Firay thought I was going to let this go that easily he was wrong. Very, very wrong.

The rest of the day passed by in a flash. When the final bell rang, I quickly left my seventh period class and hurried towards Mr. Firay's classroom. The door was locked when I arrived. I knocked, frowning, and waited a moment. Still no one came to the door.

I sighed, turning around, crossing my arms, and leaning against it. If he wasn't going to come out right now, I would wait for him all night if I had to. I wanted to know. Even though it really wasn't my business. I was just being nosy… but the look on his face had even hurt me that night. Red would be all right –she had been invited over to someone's house for the day.

I glanced out the window in front of me and my eyes widened when I saw Mr. Firay walking down the sidewalk towards the faculty parking lot. I shoved myself from the wall and made a break for the exit, hoping to cut him off. I slipped out the side door and literally ran into him.

He stabled me, looking down with an expression torn between amusement and chary. I stared up at him resolutely, my mouth in a straight line.

"I want to talk about it."

"I don't," Mr. Firay said simply, a sigh escaping his lips. "Daphne, move."

"But, Mr. Firay," I started, stepping in his way when he tried to move around me. "You can't deny what your expression told me. It was so… horrible. It hurt."

Mr. Firay's eyes narrowed slightly. "Didn't I mention this was none of your business?"

"I know you did!" I responded, growing frustrated. "But if I haven't made it clear enough, I'm just worried about you!"

I blushed immediately, turning to look at the cement sidewalk. Why couldn't he see that? And if he couldn't see that I was worried about him, would he ever realize how I felt about him? I shook my head. That was a different Matter entirely.

"Listen, Daphne," Mr. Firay started, his voice being much softer. "I'm sorry for worrying you, but this is something I don't want to share."

"Why not?"

Mr. Firay smiled wryly. "Because I don't want you to think badly of me."

"I couldn't!" I responded almost immediately. "Okay, maybe I can, but not bad enough to make me view you any differently."

Mr. Firay shook his head. "No, Daphne. Sorry."

"But—"

Mr. Firay exhaled slowly, looking at the watch around his wrist. "I've got to go."

"Another date?" I asked dryly.

A small smirk appeared on Mr. Firay's face. "You're getting smarter every day."

"Who are you dating?" I asked, trying to keep the frown from my face. "Is she your girlfriend?"

For a moment I thought I saw a flash of the expression on Mr. Firay's face from the night before. It made my heart skip a beat, but before I could make sure, it was gone.

"Something like that," Mr. Firay told me, gently pushing me out of the way.

"I'll see you tomorrow."

Just then a familiar black car pulled up next to us, music blaring from the inside. The window rolled down and I stared down at the car in shock. Mr. Firay even stopped to glower into it.

"What are you doing here, Sage?"

Sage smirked up at Mr. Firay, then pointed at me with a slim finger. "I'm here to pick up Daphne."

"You are?" I responded, my eyes widening. "Why?"

"We're going on another date today," he told me simply. "C'mon, get in."

"Sage," Mr. Firay started, but I cut him off.

"Okay," I said, opening up the passenger door and sliding in. I closed it behind me, looking up at Mr. Firay. "See you."

"Daphne, wait," Mr. Firay started, but Sage rolled up the window, making his words incoherent.

"That's mean," I told Sage, an amused smile coming onto my face.

"He's mean," Sage responded before switching gears and heading out of the parking lot. "Or at least I believe he was being mean from the expression on your face."

"What expression?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"The expression of hurt and unrequited love."

I flushed, glaring at him. "There was no feeling of unrequited love."

Sage laughed. "You can't fool me. I'm the master of emotions."

"Seriously."

Sage tapped the steering wheel with one of his fingers. "But then again, it's not unrequited."

"Yes it is," I muttered, looking out the window.

Sage chuckled. "You're so pessimistic. If you knew Matt, you'd know he definitely cares more about you than other people."

"Probably because I'm caught up in his gang problem."

"You are really negative, you know that?"

"I can't help it," I told Sage, turning to look at him. "I hate to admit it, but I really don't know anything about Mr. Firay other than what you told me. He never tells me anything about himself. The only reason I know he cares about me in the least bit is because he admitted he worries about me."

Sage sighed, glancing at me quickly. "Daphne, you have to understand Matt's past is sort of difficult."

"I figured as much…"

"Then don't worry about him not telling you everything right now, okay? He will eventually, I promise."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive," Sage responded, a smile on his face. "And if he doesn't, I can beat him up for you."

I chuckled, brushing a stray hair from my face. "Sage, you never cease to make me feel better. It's amazing."

"Well thank you," he responded, winking at me. "Someone has to help support you in your journey to capture Matt's heart. And also bring you back

up when he brings you down unknowingly."

"I never said it was my goal to 'capture his heart'," I pointed out, but smiled nonetheless.

"Oh, but it is."

"So where are you taking me?" I asked, deciding for a topic change. "Home? To get ice cream?"

"Nope," Sage responded, popping his mouth on the P. "You know how I told you I have two little sisters?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, we are going to be babysitting them," Sage told me with a grin.

**A/N. **Yup, yup. These are the wonderful little girls I was talking about. XD Thanks again for the reviews -hopefully I update tomorrow before I start packing for Disney. :D

Oh, also, I want to thank all of you for making January one of my most successful months. My story stats:

United States: 4,760 Hits; 1,360 Visitors

Canada: 691 Hits; 158 Visitors

Australia: 231 Hits; 81 Visitors

Philippines: 52 Hits; 24 Visitors

United Kingdom: 51 Hits; 21 Visitors

France: 48 Hits; 11 Visitors

Singapore: 21 Hits; 13 Visitors

Malaysia: 18 Hits; 3 Visitors

New Zealand: 10 Hits; 8 Visitors

Ireland: 9; 7 (I'm getting lazy now. :D)

Barbados: 6; 3

Hong Kong: 4; 4

Taiwan and Denmark: 3; 3

Belgium: 2; 1

India, Mexico, Cayman Islands, Brazil, Panama, and Zimbabwe: 1; 1

Oh, and _FTFT alone _has 103, 277 words, 3,765 Hits, and 818 visitors…

…

THAT'S EEEEPPPIIICCC!

So, to conclude, your six-day update comes in the last week of February! XD Be excited.

**HOPE YOU HAD A WONDERFUL JANUARY 2012 AND I HOPE YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL FEBRUARY!**

~Lara


	33. Chapter 33:

**A/N. WARISHA! DO NOT STOP** REVIEWING! DO NOT! I LOVE THEM AND ALL OTHERS LIKE THEY'RE MY CHILD (Even though I don't have any) THEY DO NOT ANNOY ME, I JUST GET OVERWHELMED! YOU, STOP THINKING NEGATIVELY BECAUSE I WILL MAKE YOU HAPPY UNTIL YOUR SMILE FALLS OFF! I do not think you're jerk. I do not think you're annoying. I do not think you should leave FF. I am not angry with you. I do not think you should stay fighting with your sister. Just calm down. Please. If you act rational, you may make decisions you do not like. Really, I like your reviews –I just wished you didn't review so much because I don't want my ego to explode, haha. You should not be embarrassed by your sister –I have a skin of iron. If she says something bad, I laugh it off, read it again, laugh again, then I'm over it. Aw, thank you. I worked hard on Puckabrina. Yes, I can't wait to write about the sisters. Here's a hug instead of killing you. *hug* Thank you again. Really, you and all the other reviewers make me smile. (This is replying to the rest of your reviews) People call me weird. :D …Crazy Shireen? So are you that other anon. reviewer, Shiree? Or is that your sister? Yeah, you're the 300th. So, prize. Do you have other accounts on sites that I may also have one? Thank you.

'Arisha': Thanks for saying so. But really, make up your mind. Do you like this story or not? Your second reviews says yes, but before you say, "Do I like this Fanfiction? NOT!" so…give me a straight answer. Seriously. And stop causing your sister annoyance –she really loves you, but you can get her mad. All big sissies are like that (including me; I just blew up at my siblings for putting rice in the trashcan instead of the sink. I'm temperamental outside of FF).

Shiree: (I think you're either Arisha or Warisha, mostly Arisha, just because you suddenly started reviewing, as did Arisha) Okay. Zzzz. Thanks. If it's boring, then why did you suddenly change your mind, saying it was good?

Hellokitty: Thanks.

TheyCallMeRed: *groans* NOT YOU TOO! Dude, I'm not offended by the amount of reviews at all. In fact, it's the complete opposite. They're so many, and wonderful…it's overwhelming. I know it's a stupid reason for you guys to lessen your reviews, but…It's how I am. I'm not used to be 'praised'. It's just never been done to me. Thanks for the review –don't be so hard on yourself. (Your ch. 31 review) Yup…I think I mentioned that in chapter 1 or so. Yup. I love Rio. Haha, glad you laughed. He's probably dealt with them before. I love Nerf guns. Aw, thank you. It's New Jersey now. Bye Disneyworld. *sniffles*

Cat: Lol, I know. So, you can only review twice per chapter. Sorry there's no update today. I had to deal with this anon. reviewing matter. Lol, I like that scene too. Red doesn't have to always go to school because she's not permanently staying in NY. She's going back to FPL later. Lol. And change of plans –we're going to a New Jersey aquarium instead. *shrugs* I guess I could use an airplane flight. I haven't been on one since last summer.

squirrel101: Haha, that's all right. I know. DocX Manager messed with the chapter. Thanks for the review. I'm glad you liked chapter 32. Wendell and Sabrina are really observant, I guess. No one else would think of staring at Daphne's neck unless they were really bored/have good eyesight. Thanks.

yellow.r0se: I'm more like an angel –taking the time to upload for you all. Heehee. He's hot, isn't he? (When I picture him, that is) …LLLOOOOOLLL. I love that story. Dude, I dare you to! I'll try. Maybe Basil will appear in a few chapters. Oh, thanks for pointing those out. Thank you! (Reply to ch. 31 review) S'okay. Thanks. Don't pee your pants! Okay.

Alexie112: Thanks.

Sorry if I missed some reviews. I just went through 33 reviews –both anon. and signed in ones. So, yeah. **I AM NOT ANNOYED BY THE MANY ANON REVIEWS. **Please, stop making up assumptions that I am ticked off. I love all of them. Seriously. Do you know how long I've been on FanFiction, and how much I _love _it. A lot of reviews just makes me happier. The only problem with it is that I like to reply to every single reviewer. I can't do that if you're spamming me **(Warisha, don't be so hard on yourself. You're a really nice reviewer –don't stop FF). **So really, one review makes me friggin happy.

**I don't know if I can make this any clearer. I have a confession to make: I LOVE YOU ALL! YOU'RE ALL LIKE MY SISTERS (OR BROTHERS IF THERE ARE ANY BOYS HERE) AND YOU'RE AWESOME! PLEASE KEEP REVIEWING! The only reason I ask for one or two reviews per chapter only is because I'm overwhelmed by happiness. And it's too many reviews to reply to. :3 So. Don't make me feel too happy by giving me so many reviews. I don't want to feel proud. I just want to make you guys happy.**

Now that that's over, please enjoy chapter 33. (By the way, for the people that I said I wasn't updating to, sorry for the false alarm. I didn't think I'd have the energy and time to write the chapter.)

**OH WAIT! THE WINNER! OF THIS WEEK'S QUESTION:**

**I think it's Rosebud143. **Whoever said they wanted to be a dog bed. I really thought that was interesting.

**My Answer: **A piece of sculpting ice. You can shape me into anything, into the person you want me to be. God would be the sculpting person, and I'd be the sculpture. We're all really pieces of ice or different material, like stone or diamond. We're different not only in material (genetic material ;D), but also in how we're shaped. Smart thinking, right?

**Chapter 33: The 'S' Family**

It had started to rain by the time we arrived at Sage's house. It wasn't a torrential rain, but one heavy enough to make my shirt damp before we entered the house. While I was taking off my shoes, a young girl with brown hair came up to us, a questioning look on her face.

"Daphne, this is Shaine," Sage said, holding gesturing towards Shaine with his hand. "And Shaine, this is Daphne." He gestured towards me.

"Hi," we both said in quiet voices.

Sage laughed, slapping my back. "Don't be shy."

I stumbled forwards from the force of the slap. A small smile slipped onto Shaine's face. I smiled back at the thirteen year old, figuring she was just smiling at my pain. She laughed now.

"I've heard a lot about you," Shaine told me, pushing a lock of hair behind her ear. "Sage likes to talk about you."

"Really?" I asked, turning to give Sage a questioning look.

"Well, about you and Matt."

Sage looked at me sheepishly as my questioning look turned into a glare. I turned back to Shaine with a forced smile.

"Does he now?"

Shaine nodded. "Your life sounds like a drama, the way Sage describes it."

I scowled at Sage, who was now scratching the back of his head. I did my best to resist kicking him.

"Shaine, let's not talk about that, okay?" he suggested, guiding me further into the house with a hand on my back. "Let's go find Sairi."

"Sairi is your seven year old sister?" I asked.

Sage nodded. "Yup. She can be a brat sometimes."

"More like all the time," Shaine muttered, tagging along aside us.

"Sage, Shaine, and Sairi," I said out loud, a smile appearing on my face. "I see a trend here."

"Can you guess what our parents names are?" Shaine asked.

"Shawn and Samantha?"

"Close," Sage responded with a smirk. "Sam and Samantha."

I grinned. "That's cool. A family of S, huh?"

"Too bad our last names don't begin with a S," Sage said, steering me up a flight of stairs.

"What is your last name?" I asked, surprised that I hadn't noticed I didn't know it before.

"Ross."

"Oh…"

"I bet you're thinking Daphne Ross doesn't sound good together," Sage commented, a smirk appearing on his face.

I blushed and shook my head. "No!"

"Daphne Firay doesn't sound good either."

I glared at Sage. "I was thinking that either!"

"I never said you were."

"Sage, stop fighting with Matt's girlfriend," Shaine interrupted, rolling her eyes. "He'll kill you."

"G-girlfriend?" I repeated, staring at the girl in shock. "No! No, no, no, we aren't dating! Sage!" I glared at him.

Sage laughed sheepishly. "Shaine, didn't I say not to talk about that?"

"What did you tell her?" I demanded, crossing my arms.

"I was just putting my input in," Shaine said to Sage, shrugging her shoulders.

"Let's just drop it," Sage suggested.

"What did you tell her?" I repeated, grabbing Sage's shirt. "Girlfriend? What?"

"Actually I believe my words were 'soon-to-be girlfriend'," Sage corrected, easily pulling out of my grasp. "And don't worry, I don't tell her much."

"He only complains," Shaine interjected. "He's always saying how one of you should fess up your feelings otherwise it'll be too late."

I blushed again, scowling at Sage. "What are you? An old lady that likes to gossip?"

Sage shrugged. "I have to express my frustrations about you guys somehow."

"It's not even your business!"

"I just want Matt to be happy; he deserves it," Sage responded, ruffling hair. "You wouldn't understand."

"Then help me understand!"

"It's not my right to tell you."

"Well if both you and Mr. Firay won't, then who will?" I demanded, growing increasingly frustrated.

Sage sighed, pushing open a door, and ushering me inside. The scowl slipped off of my face, replaced by a horrified expression as I looked around the room we were in. There were doll parts everywhere. Heads, torsos, bottoms, legs, hair… everything.

"Sairi," I heard Sage start in a scolding voice. "How many times do I have to tell you not to take apart your dolls?"

I looked to where Sage was looking and saw the cutest little girl ever. She had honey colored hair that was in pigtails, and large green eyes that reminded me of Sage's.

"Mom's going to be mad," Shaine said in a smug voice.

Sairi's eyes snapped onto mine and she smiled sweetly. I felt myself smiling back and I glanced at Sage. He was watching me with an amused expression.

"She's so cute," I told him, wanting to hug her close. "I've always wanted a little sister just like her!"

"No you don't," Sage and Shaine snorted at the same time.

Sairi walked over towards me, grabbing onto my shirt. "Sissy?"

My jaw-dropped and I looked between the little girl and Sage, my mouth now working, but no words coming out. I gestured with my finger between us and Sage laughed.

"Sairi this is Daphne, Daphne, Sairi," he introduced us.

"But you can call me sissy!" I told the little girl, squatting down to her level.

"Okay," Sairi said, giving me a huge smile.

"So cute," I gushed, looking back at Sage. "I guess cuteness runs in your family."

"You think I'm cute?" Shaine and Sage responded at the same time, both sounding smug.

I smiled half amused, half annoyed. Shaine and Sage were a lot alike personality wise. They sort of reminded me of Mr. Firay when he acted narcissistic. The same—

I shook my head. Now wasn't the time to be thinking of Mr. Firay.

"You're a very cute girl," I told Shaine, smiling.

"Well thank you," she responded, grinning at me.

Her grin reminded me of Sage's. It was scary how much these siblings were alike.

"What about me?" Sage asked, nudging my back with his elbow. "Admit it. You think I'm cute."

"I do," I responded honestly.

He smirked. "I'm going to tell Matt."

"Matt is here?" Sairi spoke, re-entering the conversation. "I want to see him!"

Sage shook his head at her. "Not today."

Sairi's expression fell instantly and a smile came to my face. I looked at Sage with a questioning expression.

"Matt sometimes comes over to keep me company when I baby sit," he explained. "Sairi is very attached to him."

"That's cute," I commented, grinning at the little girl once more.

"Sure, until she asks you to make him come over every five seconds," Sage responded with a shrug. "But anyway, I want to show you something so follow me."

"See you later," I said to Sairi, ruffling the hair on her head.

"Bye sissy," she responded and then turned to Shaine. "Will you play videogames with me?"

"Sure," I heard Shaine respond as I followed Sage out of the room.

He led me down the hallway all the way to the other end and opened up the door. I went in first, and stood still, waiting for Sage to turn on the light. When light flooded the room, I noticed I was in another bedroom.

"This is my old room," Sage told me, walking over to a dresser. "Take a seat on the bed."

I did as ordered and watched as Sage shuffled through the top drawer of the dresser before pulling out a large black book. He came back over to me and sat down on the bed as well. I peered over his shoulder to read the cover of the book.

"A yearbook?"

"Yep," Sage responded, opening it up. "I only have Matt's senior year photos because that's when I arrived at the school, and graduated the next year."

"How do you know each other then?" I asked, frowning as Sage began to flip through the color-filled pages.

"Mostly through the gang," Sage responded. "But he was also dating my cousin…"

"Who's that?"

Sage either didn't hear me, or ignored me, because he didn't reply. I stayed quiet as he continued to flip through the yearbook. Finally he came to a page that had the word "seniors" in large, fancy writing. He flipped two more pages then grinned, pointing down.

"Here's Matt's senior page."

Sage pushed the yearbook onto my lap and I stared down at the page. At least ten photos of Mr. Firay in his younger days stared back at me. A blush made its way across my face as I stared at the pictures. He was so handsome.

"Thinking something naughty?" Sage teased, his face inches away from mine. "Hmm?"

"N-no!" I denied, shaking my head quickly. "He's just so… handsome."

"He was popular with the ladies even though he was two years younger than them," Sage told me, moving his head away again.

"Was your cousin two years older than him when they dated?"

Sage nodded. "Everyone he dated was older than him, or so I've heard."

"So then he likes older girls."

"Probably."

I glanced at Sage quickly, a look of surprise passing on my face. Sage agreed? Shouldn't he deny that and tease me? Or did that mean it was the truth? Did Mr. Firay really only like older women?

Sage suddenly started laughing and I turned to look at him, a frown on my face. He continued to laugh for a few moments, putting his face in his hand. When he was done, he cleared his throat and looked back up at me.

"Sorry," he apologized, a grin on his face, "I was kidding. I'm sure Mr. Firay doesn't prefer an older woman to a younger one and vice versa. You just have cute reactions."

I blushed, scowling at him. "You're just like Mr. Firay."

"But I don't have a crush on you."

"He doesn't either!"

"Well if I'm just like Mr. Firay and I have a crush on you, that means he does too," Sage said simply.

My eyes widened a fraction of a centimeter. "But you just said you didn't have a crush on me."

"I lied."

"But you said you weren't interested in high school girls."

Sage grinned evilly. "I lied."

"But—"

Suddenly he leaned over me, placing one arm behind me and one arm across me. He then brought his leg over mine and straddled me. I stared at him in surprise, not even thinking of moving away.

"Want me to prove it?" he asked in a husky whisper.

"Huh?" I said dumbly, feeling my face grow hot from our position.

Sage pushed down on my collarbone, making me lie completely down on my back. I was too shocked to resist. Sage smirked as he brought his head closer to mine, and I felt his hand begin to lift the back of my head back.

"W-wait," I finally stuttered, putting my hands against his chest. "Sage, what are you doing?"

"I'm going to kiss you," he said in a singsong voice.

"What?"

His face was only inches away from mine now and I shut my head, trying to turn away, but Sage's hand kept it still. I felt something soft press against my lips and I froze up. When I heard chuckling, my eyes shot open.

To my confusion, Sage's head was a good two feet away from mine. I looked down and realized Sage had his pointer and middle finger pressed to my lips. I quickly opened my mouth and bit them.

"Ow!" Sage cried, yanking his hand back in pain.

I shoved his chest, making him slide off of me backwards. He toppled to the ground, and erupted in fresh laughter. I glowered at him, my face hot.

"What did you think you were doing?"

"Teasing you," Sage responded, still laughing. "I can't help it. It's so fun. It's not fair only Matt gets to do it."

"I don't find it very funny," I snapped at him.

"Oh? Did you want me to kiss you?" Sage responded as a smirk appeared on his face.

"No," I responded immediately. "You know I like Mr. Firay."

"Yup," Sage responded, returning his attention back to the yearbook. "Want to see a picture of Matt and my cousin?"

I hesitated for only a moment before nodding my head. I didn't even know why I hesitated. This was a past girlfriend of Mr. Firay's, not a current one. But for some reason I was still feeling jealous. I silently cursed myself. I didn't want to be one of those over-jealous people that wouldn't even let their love interests talk to someone of the other gender.

"Here it is."

I followed Sage's finger down to a small colored picture of a pair of people with their arms around each other. Mr. Firay was about a foot taller than the girl, and I almost laughed out loud at the girl's face.

"Nice red-eye," I commented, smirking at the picture. "I thought year book editors were supposed to fix things like this?"

Sage grinned, tapping the girl's face with his finger. "I bet they kept it like this for amusement."

I nodded, looking back down at the picture. Mr. Firay's old girlfriend was actually really pretty, if you excused the red-eye. She had light nut-brown hair that went to just past her shoulders, and a pale complexion.

"She's got the same hair color as me," I commented with a smile. Did Mr. Firay like that color hair?

"Well, I guess so," Sage responded, taking the yearbook away. "Enough of that, let's move onto another memorable picture of Matt."

"Would he kill you if he found out you were telling and showing me all of this stuff about him?"

"Probably," Sage responded casually. "This is senior prom."

I glanced down at the yearbook and the younger Mr. Firay in a black suit and deep red tie stared back at me, a huge smile on his face. His hair was gelled back the tiniest bit.

"He looks like a model!"

"Don't let him hear you say that," Sage responded with a snort. "You'll boost his ego too much. And trust me, it's big enough."

"How come Mr. Firay never smiles like this anymore?" I asked, turning my gaze to Sage, a frown appearing on my face.

Sage gave me a small smile and ruffled up my hair with his hand. I immediately snatched it away, frowning at him.

"Daphne, Matt changed a lot after the accident."

"What accident?" I demanded, my irritation growing again. "I'm so sick and tired of being left out in the dark!"

Sage sighed. "I'm sorry, Daphne."

"It's okay," I grumbled, swallowing my frustration. "I shouldn't take it out on you anyway."

"I'm sure Matt will tell you when the time is right."

"I don't know," I responded skeptically. "He seems pretty dead set on not letting me know."

"There's a small… complication," Sage started slowly, as if choosing his words carefully. "I don't think he wants to have you get the wrong idea before he can fully explain things…"

I raised an eyebrow. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"I'm guessing he's afraid of you being hurt, emotionally."

"Why?"

Sage shook his head. "I can't tell you. I've already said too much."

"But now I'm more curious than before," I complained, a frown pulling at my lips.

Sage chuckled and closed the yearbook, tossing on the bed. "Come on, Daphne. Let's go round up the girls and watch a movie."

"But—"

"Hmm, which movie should we watch?" Sage pondered while moving towards the door. "Final Destination?"

"A seven year old shouldn't be watching that," I responded, following Sage out of the room. "How about something a little more PG? Or at least PG-13."

"Those movies never have sex scenes them."

I rolled my eyes at Sage's comment. "That's so typical of a guy."

"You know, Matt got around in high school a lot."

I froze in my tracks, staring at Sage's back. Was he serious? What was that supposed to mean? That Mr. Firay was a player? But I thought he had a steady girlfriend?

I furrowed my brow. Did that mean Mr. Firay cheated on girls? He definitely didn't seem like that type. But if what Sage said was true…

Suddenly Sage started chuckling and I pulled myself from my thoughts.

"What's so funny?"

"Your expressions," he told me, pretending to wipe tears from his eyes. "I was only kidding. Matt didn't sleep around."

I scowled, kicking him in the back of the leg. "You're a jerk, you know that?"

"But you love me."

"Sure."

"Ouch…"

"Where are the girls?" I asked before Sage could continue to tease me.

"Game room," Sage responded, abruptly stopping and pulling open the door. He stuck his head in and I assumed that he caught the attention of the girls when he began to speak. "Do you two want to watch a movie with Daphne and I?"

"Yes!" I heard Sairi squeal, soon followed by the sound of light footsteps. Sairi emerged looking at me with a big grin.

"Hi there," I said to her, squatting down to her level.

"So what were you and Daphne doing all alone in your old bedroom, hmm?" I heard Shaine ask Sage as Sairi grabbed my hand.

"Adult stuff," Sage told Shaine, a smirk on his face.

I rolled my eyes. "Don't listen to him, Shaine. He's delusional."

A low rumble of thunder suddenly filled the room and Sairi flinched. She looked terrified. I held onto her hand tighter and gave her a comforting smile.

"What would you like to watch?" I asked.

"The Brothers Grimm," she responded, and began to tug me down the hall. "Let's go."

How ironic. I smiled to myself as I followed her, hearing Sage and Shaine's footsteps behind me. We entered the living room and I sat down on the couch with the girls while Sage got the movie started. I could hear the rain pounding down on the roof as it continued to grow heavier. Sage flicked off the lights and plopped down on the chair adjacent to the couch, using the remote to start the movie. I settled into a more comfortable position, Sairi clinging onto me.

Three quarters of the way through the movie, both girls were passed out. I looked at Sage in amusement only to find out he was half-asleep as well. A small chuckle escaped my lips as I shook my head. The movie wasn't that boring.

I reached into my pocket and grabbed my cell phone, aiming to check the time. When I flipped it open, it showed I had ten new text messages, thirteen missed calls, and three voice mails. I clicked on the new text messages first. Nine were from Ariana, and one, the first one in my inbox, was sent by Wendell. I decided to read his first.

_Tell me how the Everafter boy is when you get this message._

I stared at the message in confusion and re-read it a few times to make sure I had read it right. What was he talking about? I didn't know any other Everafters people besides him, Red, and Mr. Firay! And Puck. In New York, of course. I sighed, hitting the up button to read the ones from Ariana.

The first four were telling me to pick up my phone; the fifth was saying to get in contact with her ASAP; the sixth was telling me again to pick up my phone, so was the seventh; the eighth message told me to check my voicemail, and so did the ninth. The tenth said, "It's about Wendell."

I frowned deeper, unease beginning to set in. What was about Wendell? Did something happen to him? My stomach twisted uncomfortable as I went back to my cell phone's home page, trying to get to the voice mails. Before I could press call, however, my phone started vibrating in my hand. The caller I.D read "Ariana".

I immediately pressed the talk button. "Hello?"

"Daphne!" Ariana cried, sounding panicked. "Why haven't you picked up your phone?"

"I must not have had service," I told her, my eyes widening at her tone. "Ariana, what's wrong? What about Wendell?"

I heard Ariana sniffle and my heart skipped a beat. My pulse spiked and my hands became clammy. I struggled to think straight.

"Ariana?" I finally started, grasping my phone tightly. "What happened? Is something wrong with Wendell? Tell me!" I demanded when she continued to sniffle.

"Daphne, Wendell was shot!"

**A/N. Goodnight.**

**~Lara**


	34. Chapter 34:

**A/N.** (Sorry, I know I said around noon, but I was packing for the weekend)

*disapproving look* I thought we all had a deal: Five day update for you. Not SIX! (Well, if you also count that Saturday update, it's SEVEN!) The five day update finished yesterdayyy!... Lol, I do this because I love you all. XD

Anyways, does Wendell die or not? *evil laugh* You won't know until the next few chapters...

Just kidding, he doesn't die. Durr, he's an Everafter. Of course, he can be fatally injured...

But of course, this is 'the secret's out' kinda chapter. I say kinda because I have to save some stuff for the next few. ;D

BY THE WAY: CORRECTION: Rosebud143, tsk, tsk, tsk. You never pointed out that you weren't the actual person who said they'd be a dogbed. So you lied. DX But you get a prize too: spoiler or dedication? The real winner's Red though. SORRY I FORGOT! DX Don't hate me Red! Oh, **WARISHA AND THEYCALLMERED, you still haven't told me if you wanted a spoiler or one-shot because you won the 300th reviewer thing! But now, it's only spoiler or dedication. I just realized doing a one-shot would go into my school time. :/ Sorry. The prize, anyways, expires by the time I announce the next winner of the QoD.**

Ummm. Next Time's QoD (I'll accept answers now though): If you could have any power, what would you have and why?

I'll let Puck the Pervert answer this question for me: Puck: Well, _I'd _get x-ray vision, so whenever Sabrina went swimming, I could use my x-ray vision to, you know. ;) ;) ;)

(By the way, my friend Mark wrote that *bonks him on head* You're just as perverted as Puck, idiot)

I'm back to replying to anon. reviews since *Sniffles* some have left me...(AH! I FEEL BAD! I THINK I MADE WARISHA LEAVE FF! I'M A HORRIBLE PERSSSOOON!)

**I promise you all there are no deaths in this story. **

Happy Grandparent's Day, by the way.

One more thing: When Daphne said, "Sure." to Sage's, "But you love me," thing, she was _sarcastic. _I don't want to hear anymore about you guys thinking that they do like each other. **Remember: Brother and Sister kind of relationship. **XD I'm not mad though, whoever said that. It's just kind of frustrating when you tell someone something defiantly, but then they're still doubting. It's like my brother, haha. I told him you were allowed to wear athletic shorts on his Field Day yesterday, but he kept asking other people, doubting. -_- But I'm only peeved at him, so don't think I'm mad at you. PLEASE. We've had enough drama for one week.

**Chapter** **34: A Little Birdie Called Me**

"Daphne… Daphne. Daphne!"

I jumped, my head snapping towards the sound of the voice. Sage was frowning at me with a worried expression. His expression quickly became bewildered.

"What's wrong?"

The phone slid from my quivering hands, dropping to the floor with a thud. I stared at Sage in horror, unable to form coherent words. Sage immediately got off the chair he was on and stumbled towards me.

"Seriously, Daphne," he started, bending down to my level. "What's wrong? Something in the movie?"

I shook my head frantically, feeling my breath starting to come in shorter and shorter gasps. Sage's expression turned to alarm and he shook my shoulders gently. I took another deep breath, this time forcing myself to let it out slowly. Hyperventilating was never a fun thing to experience.

"Wendell," I choked out, my eyes starting to water. "He… he…"

"Breathe, Daphne."

I nodded, taking another deep breath, and letting it slowly. I repeated the process until I felt slightly calmer. Sage nodded, keeping his hands on my shoulders.

"Now tell me."

"Wendell was shot!" I told him quickly, blinking back tears. "We need to get to the hospital! Now!"

"Who's Wendell?" Sage responded with a look of confusion. "And shot as in?"

"With a gun!" I responded impatiently, carefully removing myself from the girls, and standing up. "I need to go!"

"Daphne, wait!"

Sage grabbed my wrist and pulled me to a stop as I attempted to leave the room. I turned to look at him with wide-eyes.

"What?"

"It's raining! Were you planning on walking?" Sage responded, his face in a frown.

"No one else can bring me," I told him, trying to yank my arm away. "You have to watch the girls!"

"Daphne, even if you go now I'm sure you won't be able to see your friend until he's stable."

"I don't care!" I responded, my tears starting again. "Wendell is like my brother! I'm not going to stay here and wait if he was shot!"

Sage stayed quiet for a moment, pursing his lips. I tried to yank myself free again, but found it almost impossible. Sage sighed and I scowled at him. He finally let go and I started walking out of the room again.

"Shaine," I heard Sage start. "Shaine, I need you to watch Sairi for a little bit."

I paused for a moment, turning back to him. The thirteen year old was rubbing her eyes sleepily and looking up at Sage.

"Why?" she asked.

"I need to take Daphne somewhere quickly," he told her, pulling his keys out of my pocket. "It's very important and I need you to watch Sairi for me. I'll be back as soon as possible!"

Shaine nodded, glancing at me momentarily. Sage turned and walked past me, dangling his keys in front of me. I followed immediately and we hurried downstairs and outside to the car. I yanked the door open and slid in, Sage doing the same. He started the car, and before I even buckled, pulled out into the street.

"Sage," I started, looking out the window into the black. "Sage! We're going way too fast!"

"You said you needed to get to the hospital fast!"

My protest died in my mouth when he said that. I glanced out the front, watching the windshield wipers go across the glass in swift motions. A feeling of nausea came over me and I held my seat tightly. I glanced at Sage, who was focusing intently on the road. I slightly begged for us not to crash.

The sound of a phone vibrating filled the car and I reached for my pocket to grab mine. When I couldn't feel it I panicked for a moment until I realized I had left it at Sage's house. I cursed myself quietly.

"Hello?" I heard Sage say and my head snapped to him.

"Sage! Get off the phone!" I cried quietly, looking at him in horror. "You're driving!"

He didn't look phased. "Yes, she's right here. Hold on."

I gave him a quizzical look as he held the phone out to me. I grabbed it quickly before he took his eyes off the road. When I noticed it was my phone, my expression became even more confused.

"How did you get this?"

"I grabbed it off the floor before we left," Sage told me, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

I rolled my eyes, pressing my phone to my ear. "Hello?"

"Daphne!" Ariana nearly screamed into the phone.

"Whoa, Ariana. Quiet down."

She started saying something, but I couldn't make out quite what she was saying because she was sobbing to hard. My chest clenched from the sound, but I forced myself not to tear up.

"Ariana, calm down," I ordered, swallowing nervously. "What are you saying?"

Ariana sniffled and I heard her take a deep breath. "My mom won't let me go to the hospital because it's a school day and it's too late!"

"What?" I cried it outrage. "Wendell was flipping shot and she won't let you go!

"No!" Ariana responded in the same tone.

"Wendell's life is more important than school!" I said angrily, clenching the phone in my head. "He's -Oh my God!"

Suddenly I was thrown forwards and I gasped in surprise, my head hitting the dashboard.

"Sorry," Sage muttered and I was suddenly thrown towards the window. "Almost missed the entrance to the hospital."

I rectified myself in my seat, rubbing my head. "Smooth."

"Daphne, you have to keep me updated!"

"I will," I told Ariana, brushing my bangs out of my face. "But I don't know if I'll have service in the hospital."

"Then come outside and text me every half-hour or so, _claro_?"

"_Si, claro_," I responded, looking out my window at the large building. "We're here, so I'll text you as soon as I find out what's going on."

"Okay."

"Talk to you soon."

I pulled the phone away from my head and flipped it shot, putting it into my back pocket. Sage pulled into a parking spot and I quickly flung open my door, jumping out. Immediately, I started towards the hospital doors.

"Daphne!" Sage shouted after me.

"What?" I called back, turning around.

"I've got to go back to Shaine and Sairi, so call me when you want to be picked up. No matter how late, okay?"

I nodded. "Okay… Thank you."

"Anytime," Sage responded with a grin. "Oh, and do you want me to call Matt?"

I looked at him in shock by his offer. He raised an eyebrow at me, waiting for an answer. I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. After a moment, I finally managed to speak.

"What? No! Why would I want you to do that?"

"Support?" Sage offered.

I shook my head. "No… I don't want him here. I'm okay."

"Are you sure?"

I nodded. "Positive."

"Don't hesitate to call if you need anything," Sage told me, a frown still loitering on his face.

"Okay."

"See you later, Daphne."

For a brief second I did wish Mr. Firay was here, but I quickly dismissed the thought. My thoughts were now solely on finding out Wendell's condition. I burst through the hospital doors, sweeping my now wet hair out of my face. I went to the reception desk and the receptionist looked up at me with a startled face.

"May I help you?"

"Wendell Piper," I told her, tapping my foot anxiously. "Where is he?"

She looked to her computer and typed something quickly. She scanned the computer screen, a frown appearing on her lips. "Right now he's in the ICU, and no visitors are allowed in."

"The ICU?" I responded, feeling my heart drop into my gut. "What's wrong? Will he be okay?"

"I don't know," the receptionist told me, shaking her head. "I don't know what's going on, I'm sorry."

"When can I see him?" I demanded, clenching my fists. "Soon?"

"I don't know."

I groaned in frustration. Didn't this girl know anything? "Where can I wait?"

She pursed her lips. "Are you his family?"

"Close enough."

"Only family members will be allowed to see him when—"

"I'm close enough," I snapped, glaring at her. "Please, let me at least wait by the room!"

"I'm sorry," the receptionist apologized, shaking her head. "Only family can wait in that area."

"I already told you I'm close enough!" I shouted, surely gaining the attention from everyone in the area. "Gosh! Is it really so much of a problem to let me go wait? Are you even—?"

"She's part of the family," a new voice interrupted, their voice heavily accented. "I'm Anna Piper."

My eyes widened and I turned to see a familiar woman with blonde hair frowning at the receptionist. When she noticed I was staring at her she smiled.

"Are you family?" the receptionist asked Anna, pursing her lips.

"I'm his mother," Anna responded coldly.

The receptionist looked flustered and I smirked. "You may go up then," she said, looking around. "Do you need someone to lead the way?"

"No, I've already been up," Anna responded quickly. "I'm going now, and taking this young lady with me."

"Of course," the receptionist responded.

I scowled at her. "Thanks," I said sarcastically.

Anna chuckled and put a hand on my shoulder, steering me away from the counter. I looked up at her, my eyes filling with tears again.

"Is he okay?"

The smile automatically dropped from Anna's face. My heart dropped once again and I stared at her in horror.

"He's not… He's not d-dead, is he?"

Anna's eyes flew open in shock and she shook her head frantically. "No! No, no, dear. No."

Relief brought new tears to my eyes and I scrubbed them angrily. They really needed to stop! I hated crying, especially in front of people. But the sad part was, I cried when I was sad, relieved, and angry, so I ended up crying a lot.

"Do you know what happened?" I asked Anna, following her down the white corridors of the hospital.

She frowned. "The only thing I know is he was shot twice; once in the clavicle and once in the chest. But not in the heart," she added quickly upon hearing my sharp intake of air. "I got the call maybe an hour before you did, but I haven't been let into the room yet… The doctors have been keeping me updated on his condition though, so I know he's not dead."

We entered the ICU and Anna turned left, walking down another white hallway. I dogged after her, unsettled by the quietness of the place. I had been expecting the ICU to be full of frantic and shouting people. The silence seemed deafening.

"Ms. Piper!" someone shouted and I looked up to see a tall man in a doctor's cloak waving over to here. "Come quickly!"

My eyes widened and I glanced at Anna, who looked alarmed. She hurried forwards at once and I followed behind quickly. The doctor let Anna into the room I assumed Wendell was in, but he held me back.

"I'm sorry, there's not enough room…"

"Oh," I responded, my heart sinking. "No… it's okay. I'll wait out here."

The doctor nodded, before going back into the room and closing the door after him. I didn't move for a moment, staring at the closed door with my thoughts racing. My heart felt like it was about to burst from my chest.

Was there something wrong with Wendell? Did he take a turn for the worse? What was happening? I needed to know!

I let out a frustrated groan and walked over to a bench against the wall across from the door and slumped down on it, resting my head on my hands. I resisted the urge to scream. I wanted to know what happened now to Wendell! But no one would know exactly until he woke up probably.

Shootings didn't happen around here! And certainly not involving Wendell! He hadn't done anything to deserve this! So why was he in the ICU now? I clenched my fists, taking slow breaths. It wasn't fair…

My phone stated to vibrate in my hand and my eyes snapped onto it. Coldness ran through my veins when I realized the phone call was from Wendell's phone. With shaking hands, I slowly flipped it open and put it to my ear.

"H-hello?"

"Daphne, right?"

"Who is this?" I demanded angrily. "Why do you have Wendell's phone? Are you the one who did this to him?"

"Yes, this is definitely Daphne," the man on the other side of the phone said with a small laugh. "And to answer your questions in order; Bryant, because I took it from him, and yes, in a way."

My breath caught and my eyes widened. Bryant? Bryant from the gang, Bryant? And he was the one who did this to Wendell? I clenched my jaw, my eyes narrowing.

"You shot him," I stated, clenching my phone so hard I was afraid it was going to snap.

"Is he dead?" Bryant asked in a casual voice. "I aimed for his heart…"

"Why?" I almost screamed, but immediately quieted myself when I remembered I was still in the hospital.

"You should know—" Bryant started, but suddenly stopped talking.

"I should know what?" I cried, grounding my teeth together.

There was no reply and I groaned in irritation. I pulled the phone away and glanced at it, noticing the call ended. My eyes then went to the service bars, and I realized that I didn't have service anymore.

Cursing under my breath, I jumped off the bench and rushed for the exit of the hospital. A few doctors gave me wary looks as I sped by, but I paid them no attention. I needed to get out of the hospital, and fast. Would Bryant think I hung up on him and not answer when I called back? I had to talk to him!

Torrential rain greeted me as I stepped outside the building. I looked at it briefly before turning back to my cell and waiting for reception to come in. After a moment three bars appeared and I quickly called Wendell's phone. On the second ring, my call was answered.

"Where'd you go?" Bryant drawled.

"I lost service," I told him flatly. "Why did you attack Wendell? He has nothing to do with Mr. Firay or myself!"

"Isn't he the closest person to him?" Bryant responded, sounding bored. "Don't try to lie to me. Lately I've seen them together more than with you."

"What? What the heck are you talking about? They barely even talk!" I cried in outrage.

"Where have you been?" Bryant asked in an amused tone. "They're together a lot."

"I would have noticed," I started, though now I doubted myself. If that was true, how come Wendell never mentioned it? I thought he hated Mr. Firay!

"Apparently not."

"Why did you shoot him?"

"I didn't shoot him—"

"But you said—"

"I said in a way," Bryant told me, sighing. "Don't you listen when people talk to you?"

I scowled, clenching my fist. "Then why does he have two bullet wounds?"

"I only meant to threaten him a little bit and maybe rough him up," Bryant explained. "But another guy that was with me suddenly pulled out a gun and before I knew it, he was shooting at the British boy."

"Why didn't you stop him then?" I asked, growing angrier by the second. "Wendell could have died!"

"If he did, so be it. It wouldn't be on my name."

"You're a bastard." I was so angry right now.

Bryant laughed. "Like I said, I was only threatening him. If anyone is going to die, it'll be Matt."

"Then why did you go after Wendell? Why not me? Why him?"

"Because I have different plans for you."

My next question stuck in my throat as Bryant's words processed in my mind. He had different plans for me? I quickly scanned the area around me, panicking slightly. What was that supposed to mean?

"You still there?"

"Why can't you leave us alone?" I whispered, my eyes starting to water once more. "We didn't do anything! I don't know what Mr. Firay did, but it doesn't involve Wendell or myself! Stop attacking us!"

"So you want me to just go straight for Matt?"

I paused, clenching my jaw. "No…"

"Why not? I'll leave you and your boyfriend alone. I'll just get a whole group of us and surprise Matt while he's least expecting it and that's that. I'm sure even he can't take on twenty people at once."

"No!" I shouted. "Are you a coward? Why would you do that? What did he even do to you? It doesn't even matter, actually! Just stop!"

"I'm not going to stop until he's dead."

"Why?"

"He hasn't told you? Really?" Bryant asked. "I guess I'm not that surprised."

"What did he do?"

Bryant laughed. "I'm not telling you. I'll let Matt tell you. But it's the reason why he needs to die, you'll get what you deserve, and British boy was shot. It'll all make sense when you know."

"What did he do?"

"I'm going to go for now, I'll call you later to see how your boyfriend is doing."

"Wait!" I demanded, but there was a click and I knew he had already hung up.

I glared at nothing for a few moments. What did Mr. Firay do? What could be so bad that someone would be willing to kill someone not even related because of? A wry smile came onto my face. Well, it was a gang we were talking about, so it could actually be something not that bad. But I had to know. There was no more time for secrets. Wendell's accident had crossed the line.

Mr. Firay was going to tell me what happened, no matter what. I wasn't going to wait either.

I flipped open my phone, scrolling down to Mr. Firay's number. I pressed the talk button and waited. It went directly to voicemail. Scowling, I pressed the end button. Why wasn't his phone on? I tried Sage, only to find his phone was off too. So much for calling him when I needed anything.

I needed to talk to Mr. Firay. Now. There was no way he couldn't tell me what he did was none of his business. Wendell was shot, and now it was my business. I wasn't going to take no for an answer.

Pulling out my phone once more I texted Wendell's mom, to let her know I was leaving and to keep me updated. Sitting by and waiting for Wendell to wake up wasn't only going to make me frustrated and anxious. I would go talk to Mr. Firay right now, and demand he told me. He couldn't say no!

With my fists clenched, I stepped out into the rain and headed towards Mr. Firay's house.

**A/N. **So. No more updates 'til Monday, okay? You guys got almost seven in one week. Well, really, you got six. So, wait a few days. Also, I'm going to New Jersey (my mom says that the guy we had to talked to so we could get into Disney never called back, so change of plans -_-), so I have no time to write. :3

Anon. Replies:

TCMRed: SORRY SORRY SORRY! YOU GET A PRIZE, TOO! Spoiler through FB or dedication? I say spoiler just cuz it's so much more filling. See my top A/N., please. And I plan everything, but I write as I go -'sides from the five day update thing. I planned that whole thing out and wrote it ahead of time. Most of it. Today and yesterday's were not written ahead. Lol, Sairi's awesome.

Cat: Rochelle? Nope. I don't even know if she's going to appear in this story...eh, maybe. See my top A/N., brother and sister relationship, dude. He was just messing with her. (Sage says, "Daphne's cute, but I need a hot Latina." ;DDD Hint hint) Lol, I'm glad you like her. What? You _still _don't like Sage? 0.0 Lol. Oh, _phew. _I thought I was going to have to make another chapter with ONLY Sage in it...XD I love that word too. Lol, funny! I'm supposed to show you? I don't think so. Doesn't every sibling think their brother/sister(s) are annoying? No evidence is needed. Aw, thanks.

squirrrel101: Lol, sorry about that. Thanks for pointing that out. Sage is awesome. New Jersey -it was a change of plans. :3 Thanks!

Alexie112: He's not, don't cry. :D

Y. (yellow.r0se): How are you confused? Please be detailed. :D Thanks for reviewing.

Um... So, hopefully you hear from me again when I'm back from NJ!

~Lara


	35. Chapter 35:

**A/N. **Before I forget, big shout-out to yellow.r0se -she actually said she's rooting for FTFT instead of her story. :3 Should I feel guilty or happy? Eh, a little bit of both. :3

Um, I don't think you'll be fairly satisfied with this chapter. SO! Two updates this week. _No more. _Do not guilt me into updating! Your six day update starts on the 18th of February! (Now that I think of it, you're being spoiled. XD) Why the long wait? I only have three weeks (less) to make some newspaper for Johnny Tremain. Not sure how I'm going to do that (my teacher doesn't want me to use white paper because it will look like a flyer), but with no distractions, I can do it. But the wait will be worth it. :3

And I'm really, really, really sorry if you're frustrated with the secrets in this story. I'm sorry it's at a slow pace. :3 It's just, you know how my other stories flow awkwardly? And I usually forget to add something in the story, and I say in an A/N., "Oh, I forgot to add this is the story, so remember that..." bla bla bla, or something like that? Well, I don't want that for this story. I don't want to say, "Oh, remember that Sage said to Daphne, 'If you ever get the chance, look at his phone.' because it's important, but I just forgot to add a scene for it!" because...it disrupts the story, you know? I don't really know how to explain it. If I find I good example from my old stories, I'll tell you all. But yeah, I'm sorry if you're ticked that it's slow. And you might be angrier if you find that you think the secret's lame (I think it's a little lame too. :3 But the secret I'm thinking about is being saved for later, so you won't find out about that one in five chapters or so), so sorry in advance. :) You can forget this paragraph –I just confused myself. :3

Also, sorry for last chapter, when I used His name in vain. I really didn't mean to. I'm Christian, but…I'm sorry. I don't know what I was doing while writing that. And Cat –sorry for all the cursing in this story. I'll keep it to a minimum for now. By the way, I never ever say these words in real life. It's kind of like an outlet to my frustrations. Sorry again. Oh, and -I'm in a sorry mode- sorry that this isn't magic-packed (action-packed, magic-packed, you get it? XD). At least once will Daphne get to use a wand. ^^

Now that I'm done being guilty, big applause to Epiphany on Toast for being the first to say that I won the BSGS2011! I woke up at nine today, and I opened up my emails, not expecting the results to pop up today. I was feeling tired, but then when I saw EoT's review, my eyes shot wide open, and I totally had a Daphne moment -I bit my palm! I was like, "**OOHHHHH MMYYY PUCCCKKIINNN GOOSSSHHH!" :O...:I...:X...:0...:)...:D...XD...XDDD...YESS!**"

**Thank you all so much for being amazingly Pucktastic friends. Not readers and reviewers, but **_**friends. **_**Yeah, we all haven't actually met, but I consider all of you friends because, well, we all know something about each other. I know Cat enjoys somewhat violent things (;D) I know EoT is an amazing artist, I know Curlscat was two hours away from where I was this weekend, I know that yellow.r0se's first name is Anastacia, I know that TCMRed shares a lot of the same traits as me, I know that ANannyMouse does have a FF account, I know that twilightfunatic is somewhat of a SagexDaphne shipper (heehee), I know that...I could go on and on. :3 Sorry if I didn't talk about you -I did not **_**forget you**_**, but you want to go to the chapter, right? ;D Again, thank you for helping me win my very first Sisters Grimm contest! It only took me about two years and almost half a year to accomplish that. ^^' But, I'm happy. I remember being an anon. reviewer, like Cat and TheyCallMeRed, and now you can call me a full-fledged SG writer! Yay!**

Okay, Mr. Firay says I should stop being emotional and give you the friggin chapter. I demanded him to give of Sage shirtless. We both win. Too bad he drew me a picture of a stick figure instead. T_T Wahh.

Lesson Learned: Mr. Firay is mean and can't draw.

**Chapter 35: Tell Me!**

Rain ran down my face in small streams as I hurried down the dark street that led to Mr. Firay's apartment. The forest that surrounded the road was creeping me out, but I put my best foot forward and continued, trying my best to ignore the unnerving woods. It really wasn't working.

A shudder passed over me when I imagined what could be in there watching me. I really had to stop watching so many horror movies. Pulling my jacket tighter, I kept my head straight, and my eyes on the ground. Only a little further until I'd be on a main road, and then Mr. Firay's apartment would only be about three blocks away.

I frequently checked my phone to see if Anna, Ariana, or Sage had decided to contact me. There had been no contact from any of them for the past twenty minutes. I was surprised my phone even still worked, seeing as how I was soaked to the bone and it had been in my hand the whole time, only slightly shielded from the precipitation.

A cracking noise from my left made me jump violently. I twisted towards it and stayed stock still, eyeing the area apprehensively. When a squirrel came barreling out of the black a small chuckle escaped my lips. It was just my stupid imagination again…

This time there was the sound of gravel crackling behind me and I whipped around to see a car approaching. I relaxed again, cursing my timid persona. The car continued to grow closer, and as I heard it slow down, my heart started speeding up again.

I kept walking, pretending a car wasn't following me. Wait, I didn't even know if it was following me. Maybe someone needed to ask for directions… I highly doubted that. Picking up my pace, I moved closer to the forest and away from the road. Whoever was on the car switched to high beams, and kept them on me.

By this time, I was slightly terrified. Bryant's words echoed in my mind. "I have different plans for you." I glanced back at the car quickly, but couldn't make out the driver. Suddenly it pulled ahead of me and came to a stop. I stopped too, staring at it warily.

When the door opened, I decided my best bet was to flee. Turning on my heel, I started sprinting towards the forest. The person in the car honked, scaring the crap out of me, and only making me run faster. I heard the opening and closing of a door and someone shouting after me.

I clutched my phone in a panic. Why now? Why couldn't have Bryant waited? I had to talk to Mr. Firay! And no one knew where I was going besides Anna, who didn't know anyone but my mom! I stumbled over a bush as I fought my way through the over-growth and trees. Someone was still shouting after me.

A wet tree branch slapped my face as I tried to duck under it, temporarily blinding me. Whoever was chasing me was growing closer, fast. Suddenly my foot gave out from under me and I opened my mouth in surprise but no noise came out as I fell face first. I was sliding before I had a chance to pick myself up off the ground. When I reached the bottom of the hill, I got a face full of sand.

Without moving I held down the "4" button on my phone, slowly bringing it to my head. It rang once, twice, and on the third ring I heard the sound of someone picking up.

"Mr. Firay?" I whispered, staying as silent as possible.

"Daphne," he responded, sounding both amused and frustrated for some reason. "What—"

"Help me, I don't know where I am, but someone's after me," I whispered in a rush, squeezing my eyes shut. "I know I'm always in these situations and I'm sorry, but I'm scared. So please—"

Suddenly there was a loud cry of surprise behind me, and my words were cut off as something heavy fell onto my back. I dropped my phone in surprise, a rush of air escaping my mouth, leaving me winded. The weight was gone almost as soon as it appeared, but I was still gasping for breath.

"Shoot! Sorry, Daphne."

My eyes widened and I forced myself to roll onto my back. Mr. Firay was staring down at me with an apologetic look on his face. I gasped in air, trying to regain my breath so I could speak to him. He bent down and pulled me to my feet and began to brush the dirt and sand off my body.

"I didn't think I'd slip," he told me, turning me around so he could brush off my back. "But you're the one who went down first…"

"That was you in the car?" I managed to say, stepping away from him, and turning to face him. "Why didn't you say so? I was terrified!"

"Daphne, I tried telling you that when you began to run but apparently you didn't hear me," he responded with a frown. "Do you usually run away from cars? That's a bad habit you know."

I ignored his jibe and glared at him. "That's not funny! Do you have any idea how scared I was? I thought it was Bryant coming to get me! I thought I was going to be killed or something, since apparently your stupid gangster friends don't have a problem with killing Wendell!"

"Wait," Mr. Firay interrupted, his voice growing hard. "What do you mean by 'killing Wendell'?"

I was shaking in anger now, not quite positive where it had all came from. Probably the aftershock of being scared. "They shot him, Mr. Firay! Twice!"

"Daphne, this isn't time to be joking—"

"I'm not!" I screamed, breaking the unnatural silence in the forest. "Go to the hospital and see for yourself!"

Mr. Firay seemed taken aback for a moment and watched me with wide eyes. I glared at him, brushing a strand of my drenched hair out of my face. A breeze went by, making me uncomfortable cold. I quickly folded my arms over my chest and pressed my legs together.

"When did this happen?" Mr. Firay demanded, narrowing his eyes. "Is he okay?"

I shook my head, wiping rain from my face so I could see him clearer. "I don't know. It must have happened recently because he was still in the ICU when I left the hospital. His mom's there and I texted her and told her to keep me updated on his condition."

"How do you know it was them?"

By them, he meant the gangsters. I flipped open my phone and scrolled down to the text message I had received earlier. "They have Wendell's phone. Bryant called me earlier."

"What did he say?" Mr. Firay asked, grabbing the phone away from me and looking at it with a scowl.

"He asked how Wendell was, told me he was still after you, and he said he had 'plans for me'," I quoted, staring down at the ground. "He said he didn't care whether Wendell lives or dies… but he was only going to rough him up." I looked back at Mr. Firay who was glaring at the trees. "When I asked why Wendell, he said because he was with you the most…"

"I tutor him," Mr. Firay responded simply.

"You what?"

"Tutor, you know… give him extra help? Help him learn the material more?" Mr. Firay responded, raising an eyebrow. "Surely you know—"

"I know," I snapped, scowling. "How long has this been happening for? And aren't you only the Home EC teacher?"

"Jealous?" Mr. Firay asked, a smirk appearing on his face.

I gave him a flat look. He sighed, running a hand through his now-drenched hair.

"Just for the past few weeks. His mother asked me to give him extra help after school, you know, because I skipped two grades. Apparently, the school board found out about that," he told me. "Though I didn't expect I was being spied on… Dang it. They'd even go so low as to go after a student I tutor?"

"Well he was also there with the accident near the towing place."

"But that's not the point," Mr. Firay said. "They're going after people who aren't even related to the problem! Pretty soon they might as well attack the mailman, right? I need to put an end to this."

"What? Not by yourself!" I cried, my eyes widening. "Bryant said… Even you can't take on twenty people!"

"What else am I supposed to do, Daphne?" Mr. Firay demanded with annoyance etched across his face. "Wait for them to attack another student?"

"They wouldn't attack regular students," I told him, though not entirely positive. "They'd get in trouble with the cops."

"Whoever shot Wendell is already in deep shit."

"But you can't—"

"Daphne, I'm not going to sit around while they pick of people close to me!" Mr. Firay cried, his voice raising a notch.

I stared at him in shock. Since when did Mr. Firay raise his voice? For some reason, I felt like I wanted to cry again.

"You can't do it alone," I whispered, staring at him.

"Daphne, what if you're next?" He responded, his voice back to his normal tone. "If it's you then…"

"They won't do anything to me! I'll make sure of that," I cut him off, shaking my head.

Mr. Firay shook his head. "You said early Bryant told you he had plans for you."

"I lied," I said quickly.

"Daphne," Mr. Firay started with a sigh. "How many times do I have to tell you that you can't lie to me?"

"They want you dead though," I breathed, blinking repeatedly to keep any tears from spilling. "Did you hear me? Dead!"

"Yeah, I can't say I'm surprised."

"What did you do?"

Mr. Firay's expression went blank for a moment, but then it quickly became hard. He narrowed his eyes at me.

"I told you it wasn't any of your business."

"Well now it is!" I responded, clenching my fists. "And Wendell's too! You have to tell me!"

"No!"

"Mr. Firay!"

"Drop it," he snapped, scowling.

"No! I won't!"

"Daphne, please," Mr. Firay said, running a hand through his hair. "Drop it."

"No," I stated stubbornly, growing angrier. "Wendell was shot, Mr. Firay! That's taking it too far! You can't keep whatever you did a secret anymore! It's my business now!"

"Daphne, just stop. It's not—"

Without warning, I punched Mr. Firay in the chest as hard as I could. He didn't budge, but shock flashed across his face. I hit him again, trying to put as much force into it as I could. He let me hit him a few more times until his hand captured my wrist and stopped me.

I scowled, bringing up my other fist, but was caught by Mr. Firay immediately. Now I attempted to kick his shin. Mr. Firay let out a small groan of frustration.

"Is it my fault you're so violent?" he muttered. "Just like a child…"

I stopped struggling at once, a little hurt by his comment. Time for a different approach.

"Please," I begged, putting my head against his chest, and keeping my eyes on the ground. "Please. I'm begging you now! Just tell me. Please, Matt!"

"Daphne, your hand is cold."

I pulled away from him, yanking my hand out of his grasp. The tears were now spilling out of my eyes. I glared at Mr. Firay, taking a step away from him. Now he was going to change the subject? "I hate you. I hate you!"

Mr. Firay sighed, closing his eyes. I shook my head in disbelief, taking another step away from him. I turned to walk away, but a hand enclosed on my wrist and yanked me back. Something warm enveloped me and I looked down to see Mr. Firay's jacket over my shoulders. I tried to shrug out of it, but Mr. Firay held it on by force.

"Let go of me."

"Daphne, you have to promise me you won't think any differently after I tell you."

I looked up at Mr. Firay in shock. His eyes pierced into mine with seriousness, complimented by Mr. Firay's somber face. I slowly nodded, clenching his jacket tighter to my body. He reached out and brushed a few stray tears from my face.

"And please stop crying," he said putting his forehead against mine. "I'm sorry. I'll tell you, just don't hate me."

"I couldn't hate you," I responded, too embarrassed to look at him while he was this close.

Hate him? How could he even think that I meant that? Couldn't he see how much I cared about him? A sudden feeling of excitement ran over me. I swallowed nervously as I formed my next words in my mind. This was the perfect chance to let Mr. Firay know. We were in the middle of nowhere, and alone. It was the perfect timing.

"Mr. Firay," I started, now looking at him, our foreheads now pressed together. "I… I, uh…"

"Hmm?" Mr. Firay's gaze landed on mine, and he blinked, staring at me for a second. Then he pulled away quickly, clearing his throat. "You're really cold, let's go get you warmed up."

I blushed, a frown slipping onto my face. Not yet. I was going to confess now whether or not I was cold. A shiver ran through me as a gust of wind blew through Mr. Firay's coat, reminding me that I was cold.

Mr. Firay chuckled, grabbing my hand and tugging me forwards.

"Come on, you're shivering," he commented, squeezing my hand.

"Wait, I have something to say," I protested, trying to take my hand back.

"You can tell me later," Mr. Firay responded, rolling his eyes.

"But I—"

"Don't argue with me Daphne."

I scowled, growing irritated. Why couldn't he just let me confess? Of course he didn't know I was going to, but he could at least think about the situation for a moment!

"Why didn't you call me?" Mr. Firay asked.

I sighed in resignation. I guess I wasn't confessing now. "I tried. Your phone was off."

"It wasn't off. I must not have had service," Mr. Firay responded, ducking under a tree branch and holding it up for me, and pushing me in front of him.

"Where were you?" I asked, looking back at him. "How come you were on this road?"

"I was coming back from…" he trailed off, looking away from me with a frown.

"A date?"

"Yeah," Mr. Firay muttered, looking guilty for some reason.

"Oh," I responded, turning back in front of me, my stomach twisting. I had thought Wendell was his date… but I guess not. Well, maybe some of his 'dates' were with Wendell, but not all of them…

"Is she a nice girl?" I asked casually.

"Very nice."

"Is she smart?"

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Sometimes."

I hesitated before asking the next question. "Is she pretty?"

"Beautiful," Mr. Firay murmured from behind me.

I bit my lip, staring at the ground in front of me as I walked. Who was this girl? Mr. Firay seemed to like her a lot… Did that mean I had no chance? My chest constricted uncomfortably. Probably not. After all this person was probably a woman, and I was a high school girl. The affection Mr. Firay showed was probably just something he did to entertain himself.

Suddenly something hit my face hard, making me gasp in surprise. Mr. Firay chuckled behind me.

"Pay attention."

I scowled, keeping my head up. "You know, you could care a little more."

Suddenly my wrist yanked me to a stop. I turned to scold Mr. Firay, but before I could make a word his hands were at my face, holding it in place. I blinked at him as he brought his head closer. My heart began to pound as I watched him with wide eyes. What was he planning to do?

My thoughts were interrupted when he roughly turned my head to one side, then the other, examining my face with a frown. I felt myself flushing, and I struggled to get out of his grasp.

"What are you doing?" I mumbled through my tightly pressed together lips.

"You said I should care a little more, so I'm making sure you're alright," Mr. Firay stated as it if was the most obvious thing in the world.

I finally managed to break free from his grasp, and I frowned at him. "Since when do you listen to me?"

"I don't."

"So you're sucking up?"

A smirk played across his features. "Perhaps."

I narrowed my eyes. "You're still going to tell me…"

Mr. Firay sighed. "Yes, I will…"

I kind of felt bad for practically forcing him to tell me his secret, but I had to know. And it wasn't like I was going to tell anyone. There was no one else to tell. And it didn't matter to me what he did, it wasn't like I was going to stop loving him because of it. Upon that thought my face heated up.

"Thinking of me?" Mr. Firay teased.

"No, of Sage," I responded in a more serious tone. "He's been helping me out a lot lately. I'm trying to decide what I can do to make it up to him. He tried to make a move on me today, so I might take him on a date…"

"He what?"

I kept my back towards Mr. Firay and shrugged. "You know. He pinned me to the bed and tried to kiss me."

"That brat," I heard Mr. Firay mutter and a smirk slipped onto my face.

"What do you think I should do?" I asked, my smirk growing wider.

"I don't care what you do," Mr. Firay responded in an off-tone voice. "You can date him if you want."

I turned to Mr. Firay in shock, not expecting his answer. He tilted his head to one side and studied me. I looked at him in disbelief. Was he kidding? He didn't care? A frown quickly replaced my smirk. So he didn't care… well that was right. He still had a girlfriend…

Mr. Firay started snickering and I immediately narrowed my eyes. He shook his head, trying to keep the laughter in. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. I should have been expecting this.

"Sorry, Daphne," Mr. Firay apologized, a smirk still on his face. "You know, you're reactions—"

"Are too cute, I know," I finished for him, rolling my eyes. "Except one of these days I'm really going to mean what I ask you."

"I don't want you to date Sage."

Once more, I was shocked by his words. Since when did he say such things so bluntly? This time I didn't turn to look at him. Instead, I shrugged.

"Then I won't."

"Good."

If there wasn't a blush on my face before, I was sure there was one now. I hated it, but I felt that by what Mr. Firay had just said that I might have a chance with him. Maybe he did like me. Maybe he could return my feelings. But that meant I'd have to confess, and there was no way I could do that right now. He'd probably change the topic again as soon as I opened my mouth.

But I wanted to. I wanted to so badly. I clenched my fists, now coming up to the road. Why did he have to be my teacher? And why couldn't I be eighteen already? My feelings were already too much for me to handle. Suddenly my thoughts turned sour as realization set in. I couldn't say it. I couldn't tell him my feelings and have a chance of being rejected, or being accepted and making Mr. Firay lose his job. But what if we kept it a secret?

"Okay," Mr. Firay started, breaking me out of my reverie. "We're going back to my house and you're going to take a shower and change before I tell you anything."

"I-I don't need a shower," I muttered in embarrassment.

"Yes you do, a hot one. I don't want to take a chance of you getting sick," Mr. Firay responded. "But then again, they do say only idiots get sick. And you are an idiot for walking out in the rain for as long as you did… Where were you going anyway?"

"Your house," I muttered, feeling my embarrassment grow.

Mr. Firay chuckled, opening up the passenger door for me. "I should have guessed."

I climbed into the seat and Mr. Firay closed the door for me. I snapped my seat buckle in and Mr. Firay slid into the driver's seat. He started the car and put the heat on full blast. He glanced at me to make sure I was buckled before starting down the street.

We stayed silent. We'd have a lot to talk about when we got to Mr. Firay's apartment.

**A/N. **I told you this chapter wasn't filling! D: Wait four or so days. I'm going to update either Thursday or Friday, so try to wait that long, please!

**Warisha: **I sent an email to that email address you gave me. Is that your email? I wanted to make sure before I told you your spoiler. Oh but you have to ask me _what _you want me to tell you. Only one thing though. Use your question wisely. XD

Oh, I forgot to mention, Curlscat says there are a lot of 'Lara Dee's' on Facebook, so look for the one that has the picture that somewhat looks like my FF profile picture. My profile picture looks the same, but it doesn't have my eyes looking at the computer. :3 It shows the Shugo Chara Chan and the Sisters Grimm Books, so just look for that person on FB. Also, before you ask to friend me, message me saying who you are from FF, okay? Oh, and you can also look for the state. I'm from Florida, okay? And I think it says I either work at Wattpad or FanFiction _or _Seiyo Academy…something like that. Sorry if I'm confusing you. Umm…

**Ahh! I KNOW I KNOW! **Okay, type in **facebook dot com slash LaraDFanFiction.** There we go! But you know, change the dot to '.' and the slash to '/'. I'm so smart. ^^

So…yes. I feel bad. This is a great 'pre-gift' for winning Elli's SGS2011, isn't it? D: I'm sorry –but at least you guys will get that six and seven day update things soon! ^^

Now, I must go! But before I do, **please go check out every single story that was put into the second to the last round. **They worked really hard, even if they didn't win. I'm sure they'd love it if you check their stories out with positive feedback! ^^

~Lara


	36. Chapter 36:

**A/N.**Whoa. I just noticed we're like halfway through this story... T_T ! It's moving too fast! :'( But, let us not dwell on the past, but the present!

Oh, I forgot the QoD last chapter, but the winner is Curlscat! Hers was...VERY creative:

'QoD: I'd like to be able to shapeshift. Then I could hide and nobody would see me, and I could have any animal-related power like flying or breathing underwater or super speed. If I couldn't shapeshift, I'd be like rogue and reflect other people's powers.'

Congrats! ^^ ACI should give you a shout-out. ;D

My answer: (It's not as creative as last week's though) I'd like to read minds. There was this story I read -it was really good, but some people were hating on the AUTHOR, so she took it down T_T- called Inside Your Head! And this girl wished on a magical rock, not knowing it would actually grant her wish, and she was able to read people's minds...It was so funny. And, I will know if someone's truthful. Like, "Hey Lara," *thinks* Eww. What is she wearing? "I LOVE your shirt!"  
>*mimics* "Hey So and So! Eww! What are you wearing! I SO love your shoes!" XD Bipolarness! And it's a good tool to use if you have a boyfriend. If he's thinking, "Man, she's hot." instead of, "Wow, she beautiful." or something like that, reading minds can help pick out your relationships right?<p>

**Anyways, say Happy Birthday to yellow.r0se and my brother today, will you? Anastasia's turning 14, whilst my bro's turning 7...*sniffles* He's going to grow up to be a ladies man -I know it! XD**

By the way, give a warm welcome to two new writers here in the SG Archive: Asian and Caucasian. :) I was like, "YES! ANOTHER ASIAN IN SG! Yaaaayy!" XD They both have a story out called, "The Case of the Hypocritical Killer", so check that out if you'd like. ^^ And I think TCMRed and Cat are _making _an account. I tried to look for it, "TheAfterShock", but I didn't see any results. :3 But I'm excited that they're making an account too…

Oh shoot, I just realized what I wanted in this chapter _isn't _supposed to appear this chapter. So, I have to move it to a later chapter…_OH. _Now I remember where it's supposed to go. :3 You guys don't know what I'm talking about, so I'll close my mouth for the time being. :]

Now, SECRETS ARE REVEALED!

By the way, no end A/N. today. It's a long chapter, so I don't think it's necessary. I will put up my usual "~Lara" thing, of course. :3

By the way, I think "Falling for You" by Colbie Calliat goes really well with Daphne's feelings. You should listen to it. ^^

**Chapter 36: Questions and Answers**

"Daphne?"

I jumped violently, nearly slipping on the wet bathroom floor. "Y-yeah?"

"Are you done?"

"Almost," I responded, grabbing Mr. Firay's shirt and throwing it over my head quickly.

The sleeves were about four inches too long, so I rolled them up. I then did the same to his sweatpants, rolling them up to the ankle. I pulled the waist strings as tight as I could to make sure they wouldn't fall off. Checking myself in the mirror one last time, I quickly ran a hand through my hair to make it a little more presentable before stepping out of the bathroom.

"Put this on," Mr. Firay ordered, throwing a sweatshirt at me.

"Okay," I responded, pulling the article of clothing over my head.

I took a deep breath, a small smile spreading across my face. It smelled just like Mr. Firay. I wondered what kind of laundry detergent he used… I grinned to myself when I realized how stalker-ish that sounded.

"Let's go in the living room," Mr. Firay suggested, putting a hand on my back and leading me into the room. "Sit."

I did as ordered, watching him curiously. "You aren't going to order me to make you coffee or something?"

Mr. Firay smirked. "Do you want me to?"

I shook my head, looking away from him. In a way, I actually kind of wanted to. It just seemed like an ordinary thing between us. But I wasn't about to let him know that.

"I made some hot chocolate."

I frowned at Mr. Firay. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Fine," he responded, raising an eyebrow. "Why?"

"You're being so… un-you."

A wry smile appeared on his face. "I can't be nice?"

"No! That's not it!" I said quickly, waving my hands in front of me. "It's just that—"

"Do you want to hear my story or not?"

I shut my mouth instantly, glaring at him. Well, he was still being as rude as usual. He took a seat on the chair across from me, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly.

"It's a long story…"

"I've got time," I pressed, a frown on my face. "You promised—"

"I'm going to tell it to you," Mr. Firay cut me off, rolling his eyes. "Don't whine."

"Sorry," I muttered, clenching my teeth together, and turning my attention to the floor.

"I guess I should start by saying that I lied to you."

My eyes snapped back to him, growing in surprise. He had lied to me? "When? About what?"

He sighed, running a hand through his messy, still damp hair. "Remember the time at the fair when you first followed me into the forest?"

I blushed slightly at the memory, at my stupidity at the time. "Yeah…"

"Everything I said on the Ferris wheel was a lie," Mr. Firay admitted, his eyes piercing into mine.

"Everything?" I echoed, a frown passing onto my face.

Mr. Firay nodded. "There was no friend I wanted to protect. After my mom died…I just snapped. You know how I got my split personality? That's why. I was so torn when she passed. I joined the gang out of my own free will. I liked fighting. I liked hurting people."

"But…" I slightly recalled the conversation. How I had cried because I thought I had the wrong opinion on him. "So I was right…"

"You were right?"

"Back then," I started, slowly lowering my gaze from Mr. Firay's. "I thought you were a conceited jerk. But that story about your friend made me change my views. But it was fake…"

"If I remember correctly you also cried," Mr. Firay commented in an amused voice.

I glared at him, seeing a smirk on his face. "It's not funny."

"I'm sorry about that," Mr. Firay apologized, the smirk disappearing. "I didn't know what else to say… I couldn't tell you the reason why they were after me. I didn't want to scare you away."

"You wouldn't have told me the truth no matter what then, huh?"

"Probably not," Mr. Firay responded with a smile. "The part about the lighters was the truth though. They did burn me at one point, so the scars were real."

"It would be that part that was the truth," I said, a frown slipping onto my face.

"Tell me what Sage told you about me."

My eyes widened and I stared at Mr. Firay. "H-he didn't tell me anything!"

Mr. Firay snorted. "Yeah? And I invented the punching bag."

"Well I wouldn't be surprised. You have lived for over four thousand years…"

"Daphne."

"He didn't tell me a lot," I told Mr. Firay, biting my lip. "Don't get mad at him! I basically forced him to tell me!"

"Just tell me," Mr. Firay responded, a new edge to his voice. "I don't want to hear you defending Sage. I just want to know what he told you."

"Don't hurt Sage," I warned.

"Daphne," Mr. Firay said in an annoyed tone.

I sighed, running a hand over my face, trying to remember everything he told me. "Well he told me you were gang leader, which was surprising. He also told me that you skipped two grades in middle school."

Mr. Firay urged me to go on when I had stopped.

"Um, he showed me a picture of your girlfriend."

"He _what_?"

I looked up at Mr. Firay, surprised by his suddenly livid tone. He scowled, clenching his fists, looking seriously angry.

"It was just a picture of you with her in the yearbook," I told him, trying to calm him down. "And it was a low quality picture."

"You don't know her name?" Mr. Firay questioned, looking more relaxed.

"No," I responded, narrowing my eyes in confusion. "Why?"

"No reason."

"What is her name?"

Mr. Firay pursed his lips at me for a second before reclining back on the chair with a sigh. "Diana Pierce."

"Oh." What an unusual last name… I repeated it in my head a few times trying to think if anyone I knew had that last name. I couldn't think of anyone.

"What else did Sage tell you?" Mr. Firay asked, changing the topic.

"Umm," I hesitated; glad to not be talking about Mr. Firay's girlfriend, or ex-girlfriend. "Oh, yeah! You graduated college at –physically- age twenty, right?"

"That's right."

"So how come you didn't get a job as a teacher right away? Why did you wait a full year?" I questioned.

"If I tell you that know, that will ruin the ending of my story," Mr. Firay responded, a smirk slipping onto his face. "Do you want me to ruin it?"

"No," I responded quickly, frowning at him. "I want you to start from the very beginning."

"From when I joined the gang?" Mr. Firay asked, looking over at me with a skeptical expression. "If I start from there, we'll be here all year."

"Fine, then start from where the reason Bryant wants to kill you comes from."

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Straight to the good part."

"I don't think it's good…"

"Well there are multiple reasons," Mr. Firay started, ignoring me. "I'm guessing one of them is the fact that I became gang leader even though I'm physically six years younger than him. He really wanted to become gang leader, and he would have if I hadn't accepted."

"But that's no reason to kill someone," I interrupted, my eyes widening in disbelief. "That's not even close! Why would someone—?"

"Daphne, I'm not even close to being done," Mr. Firay responded in an amused tone. "Shut up and listen."

I immediately shut my mouth, scowling at him. He could at least be a little more polite!

"Honestly, half of the reason why I accepted was just because Bryant wanted to be the leader," Mr. Firay continued, ignoring my glares. "I still remember the look on his face when it was announced. It was priceless."

"And that's why he wants you dead?"

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "Be real, Daphne."

I clenched my teeth together. "I am being real! From what I gather, someone from the gang could want you dead for looking at him the wrong way."

"That's true," Mr. Firay chuckled. "Probably not death though;you could be beaten up for it."

"What were your reasons for fighting people?" I asked, looking at Mr. Firay curiously.

"I was challenged," Mr. Firay responded simply. "I was never the one to start a fight. Provoking people is a different story though."

"But why?"

"Because I thought fighting was the best thing ever when I was younger," Mr. Firay explained, shaking his head. "It excited me, it made me feel alive, and there was no one that could stop me."

"What do you mean?"

"My mom wasn't around," Mr. Firay said, shrugging his shoulders. "And all the other fairies lived too far away to even know what I was doing. I also had isolated myself from Puck, so he had no idea."

His mom wasn't around? A twisting feeling crept into my stomach as I quickly did math in my head. Mr. Firay joined the gang at age sixteen, and he said his mom wasn't around…

"Mr. Firay…"

"Matt," Mr. Firay corrected me. "How many times—"

"Did you lie?" I said quietly, turning accusing eyes on him.

"About what?"

"About your mom."

Mr. Firay looked at me in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"You just said your mom wasn't around when you joined the gang. But the time you were giving me a ride home you said your mom died four or so years ago, not seven. Did you lie about that?"

"What?" Mr. Firay responded, his eyes growing wide. "No! Do you honestly think that I'd lie about something like that?"

"Then what did you mean?"

"I meant she was so busy in Faerie she was never home," Mr. Firay explained, a frown on his face. "Why would you think I'd lie when my mom died?"

"Well you did lie about that other thing…"

"Daphne, I'm sorry I lied to you," Mr. Firay apologized with a sigh.

"Do you promise not to lie to me again?" I blurted out suddenly.

Mr. Firay looked surprised by my request, and I blushed, looking away from him quickly. I had said that without thinking! Now he was going to think I was some desperate, serious girl!

"S-sorry, ignore me," I stuttered, clenching my fists. Stupid, stupid!

To my surprise, Mr. Firay started laughing. I looked up at him, not sure what expression to make. He smirked at me, his eyes lighting up mischievously.

"If I promise not to lie to you, you can't lie to me," he bargained.

"I don't lie to you…"

"Hypocrite," Mr. Firay sung in a quiet voice, the smirk growing bigger. "I always—"

"Know when I'm lying," I finished for him in a snippy tone. "But I've never lied to you because you catch me in the lie before I can get away with it."

"You're just easy to figure out."

I felt my face heat up again in embarrassment. "Whatever."

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Should we get back to my story?"

I nodded, drawing my knees up to my chest, and watching Mr. Firay. He shifted positions, making it easier for me to see his face. Slowly, I lowered my gaze lowered to the floor. It was hard to keep eye contact with Mr. Firay.

"It was my senior year when I met Diana," he started, drumming his fingers along the arm of the chair. "Did Sage show you the picture of us in the yearbook?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

"We weren't dating then," he told me. "We were going to different colleges, so we thought it was best not to get into a relationship. But we still saw a lot of each other because of Sage."

"Because they're cousins, right?"

"How do you know?"

"Sage told me that," I admitted. "But nothing else!"

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "Calm down, I won't hurt Sage for telling you that."

"Okay."

"Anyway," Mr. Firay continued, stretching out his legs. "Diana ended up transferring to my college halfway through my third year at college."

"Is that when you started dating?"

"No," Mr. Firay responded slowly. "At the time she was dating someone else…"

"Who?"

"Bryant."

My eyes widened, and I stared at Mr. Firay in shock. "No way!"

Mr. Firay nodded. "I guess they started dating right after graduation. Which is probably one of her reasons for not wanting a relationship with me senior year."

"But if she was his girlfriend then how did you—?"

"Slow down," Mr. Firay commented, a smirk slipping onto his face. "I'm getting there."

I frowned at him, but relaxed back into the couch. "Please continue then."

"Diana was in just about every one of my classes, and she didn't really know anyone, so she basically only talked to me. I'm sure I don't have to say that I still had feelings for her from back in high school. But as I began to like her more and more, I began to notice things I hadn't noticed before."

"Like what?" I questioned.

"Like the bruises that would appear on her arms every time she had a fight with Bryant."

I gasped, bringing a hand up to my mouth, knowing immediately what Mr. Firay meant. "Bryant abused her? But how did you know?"

"Diana and I were best friends, she told me about the fights she got into with him. She didn't know about the gang thing," Mr. Firay explained. "So she didn't realize Bryant and I knew each other. She did tell me that he abused her though."

"So what did you do?"

"There was nothing I could do at first," Mr. Firay responded. "She was a proud person… I didn't want to injure her pride by bringing up the subject. But one day she came in with a broken wrist. That's when I demanded her to tell me what was happening."

"And did she?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "Everything. Bryant was basically forcing her to stay with him, and she didn't like him. She was scared of him. After awhile I convinced her to break up with Bryant…"

"How?"

Mr. Firay smiled wryly. "I told her I'd protect her."

I stayed silent, waiting for Mr. Firay to continue, but he didn't. He was staring off into space, a frown on his face. I let him be for a few minutes, occupying myself with my fingers.

"She came back to class after she broke up with him with more bruises than ever before," Mr. Firay suddenly said, interrupting the silence. "I couldn't protect her then, but I still promised her I'd protect her in the future. She believed me."

"And Bryant?" I asked.

"At this point, Bryant still didn't know I went to the same school as her, let alone knew her, so there was no connection between us. Diana didn't trust guys though, so it wasn't like I could start dating her right away. I spent a half a year having what I thought was an unrequited love."

"Half a year?" I repeated, my eyes widening. "Really?"

Mr. Firay smiled. "Daphne, have you ever been in love?"

Surprised by his question, it took me a moment to respond. My face flushed and I quickly avoided my gaze. Have I ever been in love? The man I was in love with was sitting in front of me!

"Have you?" Mr. Firay prodded.

I cleared my throat. "Y-yes," I muttered, focusing on my fingers.

"Okay, now picture the one you love not being able to love you back for some reason or another," Mr. Firay told me.

A wry smile made its way into my face. Was he purposely describing my situation?

"Okay."

"Would you give up on that person just because of that while they're still by your side?"

I shook my head vehemently. "No. Never."

"There you go. It just so happened I had to wait half a year, which is basically nothing. It could have been worse."

"Yeah, could have," I mumbled, glancing up at him. He smirked back.

"One day she randomly asked me out," Mr. Firay said, going back to his story, an amused tone to his voice. "Really, it was out of nowhere. But I accepted right away. Everything was great for about two months…"

"What happened?"

"I don't know how Bryant found out, but he did… and this is where the story gets to the climax."

"Already?"

"You sound disappointed," Mr. Firay commented, an amused smirk slipping onto his face.

"No, I'm not!" I responded quickly, waving my hand. "I'm just going to shut up…"

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Right. Should I continue now?"

"Yes," I mumbled, blushing lightly.

"Bryant first came to me. I have to admit, he put up quite a fight. I had to get stitches for one of the cuts on my back. However, there was a reason I was gang leader. Even he couldn't take me out. I didn't even use magic."

"So you beat him up?"

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "Of course I did."

I scowled at Mr. Firay's cockiness. "Is that why he wants you dead? You stole his girlfriend?"

"That's a large part, I believe," Mr. Firay responded. "But not the only part."

"What else? Did Bryant do something else?"

"Bryant went after Diana next."

"You're kidding!" I cried, my eyes widening. "What happened?"

Mr. Firay sighed, running his hands over his face. "It was really late at night when I received a text message from Diana, telling me she was downtown by herself and she was in some trouble. So I quickly went down town to go see what was wrong… I searched for her for about a good twenty minutes, since she never responded to anymore of the text messages I sent her."

"She wasn't actually there?"

Mr. Firay shook his head. "No she was. I eventually found her… along with Bryant and a few of his followers. She was on the ground."

My pulse started to increase and I swallowed nervously, waiting for Mr. Firay to continue. He was rubbing his forehead with a hand, shaking his head.

"This was the second time I had failed to protect her…"

"What happened?" I whispered.

Mr. Firay looked up at me, his mouth pressed in a tight line. "You can't figure it out?"

I stared at him in shock, surprised by his sudden hard tone. I opened my mouth to reply, but nothing came out. Mr. Firay continued to glare at me for a moment, until he snapped it out.

"Sorry," he muttered, looking away.

"It's okay," I told him quickly.

"I just can't stand it," Mr. Firay suddenly said in an angry voice. "I told her I'd protect her. When I didn't the first time, she still trusted me to. And I failed her twice."

"But that's not your fault—" I started, but was cut off.

"Yes it is," Mr. Firay snapped. "I should have known Bryant would be so low as to go after her! I should have known that!"

"But you didn't know, so it's not your fault!" I argued.

"Daphne, she almost died because of me! It is my fault!" Mr. Firay nearly shouted, making me jump.

"But—" I said in a quiet voice.

"Let me finish before you say anything else," Mr. Firay interrupted, his tone calm again. "You wanted to know what I did the year between college graduation and the job I have now, right?"

"Yeah," I responded, biting my lip.

"I was in jail."

I laughed, rolling my eyes at Mr. Firay. "Mr. Firay, please. Save the jokes for later. Jail? For a year?"

"I'm not joking, Daphne."

I immediately sobered up, staring at Mr. Firay with wide eyes. He gave me a flat look, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"Y-you're not?"

"No," Mr. Firay stated solemnly.

I was literally speechless. The only thing I could do, was to stare at Mr. Firay. I felt like such a jerk. I lowered my gaze, wishing I could take back what I'd said. Jail? Mr. Firay was in jail?

"I almost murdered three people that night," Mr. Firay suddenly said. "I was so close…"

I looked up at him, swallowing. "What happened?"

Mr. Firay closed his eyes, a sigh escaping his lips. "I didn't have a chance to speak before the three people who were with Bryant were after me. They probably had everything planned out. They all had knives, but I wasn't surprised. I was prepared this time too. I had brought a knife just in case. I didn't dare bring anything magical –it always had a price to pay. And it also reminded me too much of my mom."

I stayed silent, waiting for Mr. Firay to continue. It seemed like he was thinking about what to say next. I figured he wanted to spare me the details— and I wanted him to as well.

"His followers were a piece of cake," Mr. Firay finally continued. "I did more damage to them than I should have. But they deserved it. Bryant was the one that deserved the most though. I would have killed him. I was so close too, but the cops came. We both tried to run, but obviously we were caught." He laughed without humor. "I got eight months in prison for civil unrest, and for possession of an unauthorized weapon. Bryant got fourteen months for the same, but extra months because he was the instigator. It was just a warning though."

"What about Diana?"

"That bastard lied and got away with it," Mr. Firay said angrily. "He said he'd found her like this, and he blamed what happened on one of his followers, who's still in prison to this day. Bryant wasn't connected to her in anyway."

"He put the blame on a friend?" I asked in disbelief.

"Follower, not friend."

I frowned, taking all of what he said in. Realization hit me and I gasped. "But you know the truth! Is that why he wants you dead? Because you know the truth?"

"Yes, that's another part of the reason," Mr. Firay responded.

"So just tell the police!"

"It's not that simple," Mr. Firay told me, sighing again. "Daphne, I was in serious trouble after that night. As soon as I got out of jail, I was old if I got involved with a gang again, I'd be going back, and this time for longer than eight months. They dropped that case after Diana told them to, I can't bring it up again because of what's happening without getting Diana involved again, and getting myself back in prison."

"Hold up," I said slowly. "Diana dropped the case?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "She has kept quiet about the fact it was Bryant's fault, not that follower who got blamed, so once the follower was blamed, she dropped it. She didn't want anything to do with the gang anymore."

"But what about you?"

"Before I went to jail, she dumped me," Mr. Firay responded, a smile on his face.

My stomach clenched uncomfortably and I clenched my fists. Anger surged through me. "Stop smiling!"

Mr. Firay's eyes widened a fraction of an inch in surprise. "What?"

"What's to smile about?" I cried, glaring at Mr. Firay. "She broke up with you, after you went through all that to protect her? And what's worse is that you had to go to jail and she broke up with you before you were locked away? That's not something to smile about, Mr. Firay!"

"Daphne, hold on," Mr. Firay cut in, but I didn't stop.

"I don't even know who this person is, but I hate her! Why would she do something like that? It's not fair! And you loved her…"

I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. Cursing myself silently, I lowered my head so Mr. Firay couldn't see my face. I blinked rapidly, determined not to let any tears spill.

"Damn it, Daphne," I heard Mr. Firay curse.

I kept my head down as I heard him get off the chair and start walking towards me. His shoes appeared in my line vision, but I refuse to look up. I felt Mr. Firay's hand on my shoulder, and then his chest appeared in my sight. I looked up an inch and came face-to-face with him, literally.

"Stop crying," he ordered, tightening his grip on my shoulder. "Why do you always cry over me?"

"I'm not crying!" I returned, staring at him determinedly. "I'm just angry!"

"Obviously."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "I don't like Diana. She just dropped you like that! If you really love someone, I think you should be able to handle a gang problem like that!"

"Daphne, she was injured really severely, I can't blame her," Mr. Firay responded, straightening himself out. Instead of going back to his chair, he took a seat beside me on the couch.

"That's an excuse," I pointed out, frowning. "You're covering up for her."

"Tell me, Daphne," Mr. Firay started, his eyes piercing into mine. "Remember what happened at the beach? What if I hadn't come? And what happened, was the fault of the person you loved?"

"I wouldn't care," I stated boldly. "The person I love means so much to me that nothing could ever make me stop loving him."

Mr. Firay smiled. "He must be a lucky guy."

It's you, you idiot! My mind screamed, but I just managed a half-smile at him. "If he's lucky, then Diana is also lucky for having someone like you love her."

"Everyone I love gets dragged into my problems and hurt, so I don't think it's luck," Mr. Firay responded, his expression softening.

"Tell me, Mr. Firay…"

"Matt."

"Um, Matt," I started, lowering my gaze. "Do you still… love her?"

"Someone once told me you never stop loving someone."

I looked up at him, disappointment washing through me. What was that supposed to mean? He still loved her? Even though she broke up with him? Wait… that happened a year ago, I thought. So did that mean that…? My eyes widened in realization.

"Your dates… they're with her, aren't they?"

Mr. Firay sighed and nodded. A brick dropped into my gut and I caught my breath. They were dating? Mr. Firay was dating his ex-girlfriend that he was in love with? All those dates over the past weeks, he was with her?

My mouth was dry. So where did that leave me? He and Diana were probably going to get back together then. It was only a matter of time before they were a couple. Did that mean there was no chance Mr. Firay actually liked me? All those instances when I thought he might, I was wrong? Was he really just being nice? No ulterior motive.

I clenched my fists. No. I was wrong. Why was I having such discouraging thoughts? Is this what it was like to in love? Even if Mr. Firay was still in love with Diana, I would make him love me.

"Daphne, I have something to confess."

"What?" I asked, snapping myself out of my thoughts.

"They weren't dates," Mr. Firay admitted. "Not one of them. I just said that the first time to make you jealous because I wanted to see your reaction. But then when you started dating Sage, I kept lying to you because I didn't like you being with Sage and I wanted you to feel jealous."

Trying not to smile as his words registered was a hard task. I looked at him, keeping my mouth as straight as possible. "Were you jealous of Sage?"

"Yes," Mr. Firay admitted. "I said I wouldn't lie to you anymore, so I won't." Guilt flashed over his face, but I ignored it.

"It's fine," I told him, trying to be nonchalant. "I was jealous when you said you had dates."

"That was obvious," Mr. Firay commented, a smirk slipping onto his face.

I blushed, glaring at him angrily. "You're a jerk."

Mr. Firay laughed, and continued to laugh for a full five minutes. I frowned at him the whole time. When he finally sobered up, I raised an eyebrow at him.

"What?" he asked, giving me a questioning look.

"I didn't think I said was that funny," I told him.

"Oh, it wasn't."

I rolled my eyes, causing him to chuckle.

"Daphne, you don't realize how relieved I am to know you don't care that I was in jail for eight months, or that I lied to you, or that I fought people for fun, or that I nearly killed someone. I think most people would be running off in the other direction by now," he told me, brushing a strand of hair out of his face. His dropped his hand back onto the couch, and it brushed against mine, staying there.

"I'm a Grimm, aren't I? I'm not most people." I blushed again clearing my throat. "And I have my reasons…"

_The main reason being I'm in love with you._

"Daphne…"

I looked up at Mr. Firay, tilting my head to the side. He returned my look with a guilty one, and immediately I began to frown. I didn't like that look.

"What?" I asked nervously.

Mr. Firay ran a hand threw his shaggy hair. "It's midnight… you should probably call your mom."

I frowned. That obviously wasn't what he was going to say—

I gasped, now realizing the time he just said. I pushed myself up off the couch, placing my hand on top of Mr. Firay's support. I yanked it back in surprise from the contact, making me collapse to the side and onto Mr. Firay instead. Blushing furiously I muttered my apologies, trying to pull myself off of him.

He chuckled, and I could feel it reverberate through his chest. I pushed myself up, so that I was hovering over him. Before I could pull away completely, he grabbed the front of my shirt and stopped me.

"Daphne, sometimes I wish you weren't my student," he said so quietly I almost didn't hear him.

My breath caught and I stared at him, his eyes penetrating mine with their usual intensity. This time however, I didn't look away immediately. I held his gaze as best as I could. To my amazement, he ended up looking away first. Then he gently pushed me away from him.

"I'll give you a ride home," he muttered, pushing off the couch as well.

I stared at him for a moment, not sure what to say. Did that mean what I think it meant? Did he have feelings for me a teacher shouldn't have for his student? A smile made its way across my face.

Maybe it wasn't a direct confession. But it was definitely a step.

**A/N. **~Lara


	37. Chapter 37:

**A/N. **Who else is fed up with FF right now? o,(0_0),o (the small 'o's' are supposed to be fists) I really am tired of them not letting us log in for hours. I was in the middle of writing a reply to Curlscat's review, and when I sent it, my computer says, "Internet Explorer Cannot Display the Page". DX{ ! So, I originally was going to update yesterday and I'm sorry I didn't. Blame FF for being…_olive._

But anyways…

*gasp gasp gasp gasp gasp gasp gasp gasp gasp gasp gasp gasp gasp gasp!*

Four.

Hundred.

Reviews.

**NAKUHAYNAKU!NAANGKAHANGAHANGANG!**Wow! Shugoi! (It's an inside joke thing…) \(^-^)/ Thank you, everyone! That's amazing –it really is. Only 36 –now 37- chapters are up, and +400 reviews. Thank you, everyone. The **400****th**** Reviewer is Warisha**, so congrats! You get four questions to ask me…WAIT, that means you have seven more questions to ask me…Lucky you! High-five!

Kian says thank you to those who said Happy Birthday (though, I don't think anyone did, hahaha!)! He's in a good mood. Oh, and we watched Journey 2: The Mysterious Island for his birthday as a bonus (Man he's spoiled: A Trip to NJ, Presents, and a Movie…)! OMG! I LOVE JOSH HUTCHERSON! He's gotten so handsome over the years –I almost didn't recognize him. And Gabato –rofl. He's giving a tour in his helicopter, "On this side of the air craft is the South Pacific Ocean. On your left is the _other _South Pacific Ocean." Everyone on the plane: -_-' Bahahaa!...

Okay, I'm done. This chapter is provided to you by: **Cooking Mama! **She helped me with this –as did Curlscat for giving me this idea- so big hugs to them! Oh, and the Grinch for not staying out of my way: **};] **You're a mean one, Mr. Grinch…

**Chapter 37: Unbelievable**

"Okay, everyone go to your cooking stations and I'll begin to hand out the crabs. Make sure either you or your partner grabs a tray, and cooking tools –remember the crackers!" Mr. Firay started, shooing everyone out of their seats with his hands.

There was the scraping of chairs, little groans, and some twitters of excitement. I stayed in my seat, looking down at the phone in my hand for any new news. My heart skipped a beat when I saw I had a text message from Anna. It took me a few tries to unlock my phone and read it because my hands were shaking.

"Still nothing."

I sighed, hitting the reply button and typing a quick "okay". Wendell still wasn't conscious. But he wasn't in critical condition anymore either, so that was good. His mom had been keeping Ariana and I updated constantly, which is why I had my phone out in class. Usually I stuck to the no texting in class rule.

"Phone away, Ms. Grimm."

I nearly jumped a mile in my seat. Mr. Firay smirked down at me when I lifted my head to grin at him sheepishly. "Sorry."

"Normally I'm supposed to confiscate it..." Mr. Firay trailed off, the smirk on his face growing wider, probably thinking of the time he had tricked me. "But since I know you're worried about Wendell, I'll let you keep it. Don't let me see it again."

"Um, thanks," I muttered, still pink-faced. I quickly slipped my phone into my pocket. "Mr. Firay?"

"What?"

"Since Wendell is my lab partner, what am I going to do? Should I join another group?" I asked, hoping I didn't have to work alone. Dead crabs and I didn't mix. Well, alive crabs didn't like me either. One of the foster homes we were put in worked in the fishing industry. Sabrina and I were supposed to catch lobsters and other crustaceans…it was not a good experience.

"No," Mr. Firay responded. "You'll be working with me."

My eyes widened slightly. How lucky was that? I couldn't stop a small grin from spreading across my face. He must have done this a thousand times! Now I wouldn't have to touch the disgusting thing! Mr. Firay started raised an eyebrow at my expression.

"I hope you're not thinking that I'll be doing all the work," he commented, his smirk growing.

I scowled at him. Olive.

"No," I lied, determined not to give him the satisfaction of somehow being able to read me easily.

"Right..."

"I wasn't!"

"You can't lie to me," Mr. Firay responded, shaking his head. "You think you'd realize that by now?"

I scowled at him. "Maybe I have lied-"

"Mr. Firay?"

Willow's voice gave me a start, and I turned to look at her. She smiled at me quickly, before redirecting her attention to Mr. Firay. A small whoosh of air left my mouth and I swallowed nervously. I had totally forgotten that I was in class! Judging by Mr. Firay's unsurprised look, he hadn't. He smiled at Willow.

"Yes?"

"Are you going to pass out the crabs soon?" she asked, an amused smile slipping onto her face. "My partner and I are ready."

"Right away," Mr. Firay responded, mock saluting her.

Willow giggled and I couldn't help a smile from slipping onto my face. As she walked away, Mr. Firay gestured me to follow him into the supply room. I obeyed immediately, trailing behind him like a dog as he made his way towards the room.

"Grab that tub off the counter," he ordered, gesturing towards a humongous, white tub. "Get the box of latex gloves as well."

"What are you going to take?"

"The lab papers," Mr. Firay responded as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. I'm surprised he didn't add a "duh".

Scowling, I went over to the tub and tried to pick it up. Emphasis on tried.

"What's in here?" I groaned, trying to pick it up again. "It's ridiculously heavy!"

"Probably around forty dead crabs..."

Immediately I stopped trying to pick it up, my face wrinkling in disgust. "What? Why do you have that many?

"There's about twenty students per class, that means ten crabs for ten pairs, and I have four classes. Can you do the math, or should I elaborate?"

"I know how to do math," I snapped at him, another scowl forming.

Part of me was glad that everything was normal between Mr. Firay and myself, but the other part of me was confused. I didn't want it to be awkward or anything, but I had been expecting at least something to be different between us after what Mr. Firay had said last night.

But nope, Mr. Firay was still the pain in the butt like he always was. A sigh escaped my lips as I tried once again to lift the heavy tub of carcasses. Just the thoughts of a dead crab made me feel nauseous. How in the world was I supposed to touch it? Wait…dissect was a better word. _How was I supposed to dissect it?_ I slid the tub of the edge of the counter, and immediately I realized I couldn't hold the weight, and struggled to put the tub back on the counter before it plummeted to the ground. It was the tub versus me. It was winning.

A low chuckle came from right behind me and I jerked, the tub slipping out of hands. Immediately two hand shot out from either side of me, catching the tub before it even dropped three inches down.

"Smooth move," Mr. Firay commented.

His chest was pressed to my back, and I could feel the vibrations from it as he spoke. I blushed from our proximity, standing stock still as Mr. Firay set the tub back on the counter. He retracted his arms from around me and I stepped to the side, frowning at him.

"Mr. Firay, you're going to take the tub. I'm going to take the gloves and labs," I told him, yanking the papers out of his hand, and then turning to grab the box of latex gloves. "Now let's go."

I glanced back at Mr. Firay, who gave me an amused look, a smirk slipping onto his face. He easily lifted the tub of carcasses with ease, nodding with his head for me to exit the room. I did so, exiting the supply room.

"Since I'm holding the tub, you'll have to place a crab on each cooking tray," Mr. Firay commented in a cheerful voice.

I froze, turning to stare at him in horror. "But I… they… I can't! I—"

Mr. Firay chuckled again, rolling his eyes. "You're such a baby."

I narrowed my eyes and opened my mouth to retort, but before I could say anything a guy from my class, Daniel, called Mr. Firay over. He brought the tub over to Tom's table and proceeded to open the tub, and take out a dead crab. I almost gagged.

Ten minutes later, an awful scent filled the room and a dead crab was placed in front of me. Students surrounded my lab table, watching with giddiness. Mr. Firay was showing them how to take the shell off the crab and the other parts.

"Make sure the crab's stomach is facing upwards. Now, pull off this triangle-shaped flap, or the 'apron'," Mr. Firay explained, pointing at the place mentioned. "Turn it over and remove the shell by inserting your thumb between the body and the shell at the crab's rear, pulling the shell upwards. Then you should be able to twist off the claws and legs easily."

"You look like you're going to be sick," someone whispered in my ear.

Turning my head, I realized it was Daniel. He smirked at me, his eyes glowing with amusement. I rolled my eyes.

"Can't you smell it?"

"Smells great!" Daniel responded, taking a deep whiff of air. "It's so… ugh." He covered his mouth and shut his eyes in disgust.

A short burst of laughter escaped my lips, before I covered it, glancing back at Mr. Firay, who was watching me with a frown. I felt my face heat up slightly and I quickly averted my gaze.

"Ms. Grimm, you'd better be paying attention," he warned.

"It's my fault," Daniel interjected before I could reply.

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow, turning his eyes to Daniel. "Well Daniel, you, too, have to pay attention."

"Yes, sir!" Daniel responded, lifting his arm up to salute Mr. Firay, and nicking me in the face with his elbow. He didn't even notice.

A smirk appeared on Mr. Firay's face, making it obvious he had seen the accident, as he returned his attention to the dead crab in front of him, opening the stomach. When it was fully open, you could see the crab's insides.

"Can you guys handle it?" Mr. Firay asked, turning his attention back to the class. "Taking the arms and legs out will be a little more difficult, but if you pull hard enough, they'll come out easily. Then use the cracker to crack open the leg shells. When you're done with that, pick out the meat with the tip of the crab's claw."

"I think I'm going to be sick," a girl commented from behind me.

Mr. Firay laughed. "You'll get used to the smell soon, don't worry."

"Doubt it," the same student muttered.

"Alright," Mr. Firay said, clapping his hands together. "Get to it. There's gloves right here, so grab a pair for you and your partner if you need them."

Students shuffled forwards to take the gloves, and I moved back to let them pass me. When everyone was all set, I went closer to the cooking table, eyeing the crab warily. Mr. Firay had a smirk on his face again as he pulled on some of the gloves. He tossed a pair at me, and then handed me the scissors.

"You take off the other part of the shell and I'll start pulling the legs and claws out. I'll crack open the legs, too."

"I'll pass," I responded, feeling queasy already. "I can't really handle dissections—"

"Don't be a milksop," Mr. Firay interrupted me, rolling his eyes.

I gave him a flat look. "What does that even mean?"

Mr. Firay sighed, not even bothering to respond. I frowned slightly, turning my attention to putting my gloves on. What was I expecting, exactly? At least some kind of change in attitude, definitely. But everything was just so… normal. It was a little nerve-wracking.

Had there been no special meaning behind what Mr. Firay had said last night? Did he just wish that because the gang was targeting me? Because I was a bad student? Or because he liked me in a way a teacher shouldn't like his student?

That thought was quickly blown out of the way. No, it couldn't be that. Mr. Firay still loved Diana. He went to see her all the time, and he had said, "You never stop loving someone." But as in he was still in love with her, or still loved her? They both had two different meanings.

I sighed, shaking my head slightly. I sounded like some weird, obsessed, stalker.

"Open, Daphne," Mr. Firay commanded, grabbing my hand and bringing it to the front of the crab. "Right here."

For a second I relished in the fact he was holding my hand, but I quickly sobered up as he tugged at my hand, the shell opening little by little. I tried to yank my hand back, but Mr. Firay held it firmly. Even though I was in the process of opening up a dead crab, a blush still somehow made its way onto my face.

"C'mon," Mr. Firay said, rolling his eyes again. "It's not that bad."

I shook my head. "I can't," I stated stubbornly.

Mr. Firay sighed, letting go of my hand. "Fine, I'll open it and crack the leg shells, and you won't have to do anything."

I blinked, staring at Mr. Firay in surprise. He was going to just let me off like that? Maybe something had changed after all. A smile made its way onto my face.

"However, next lab day you'll be pulling the spongy gills and the paddles out," he continued, a smirk slipping onto his face.

"That's not fair!" I protested, making a grab for the crab. "I'd rather take the shell off instead!"

"Too late now," he told me, pulling the shell completely off quickly. "I got the easy part."

I glared at him. "You're a jerk."

He chuckled. "I know."

"Mr. Firay?" a new voice spoke.

Mr. Firay turned towards the girl whom had spoken. She glanced at me before returning her gaze to Mr. Firay.

"Can you help my partner and me?" she asked, pursing her lips. "We can't get the leg out…"

"Of course, I'll do it for you," Mr. Firay responded, smiling at the girl.

The girl smiled back, and then started walking back to her table. I rolled my eyes, frowning at Mr. Firay. He smirked at me for a moment, before nodding towards the crab with his head.

"When I get back I expect this crab's arms and claws to be pulled out," he told me.

"But—" I protested, but stopped when he began to walk away.

I sighed, looking back down at the crab. Was Mr. Firay really going to make me do this by myself? It was so unfair! I swallowed, picking up the crabs' dead claw. To my surprise, the arm was already out of the skin. The other claw and both legs were already out of the crab as well. I glanced at Mr. Firay and found him looking back at me. He smirked, and I blushed, looking away instantly.

I hadn't even seen him do it for me. With new resolve, I pulled my gloves on tighter. The least I could do was rid the crab of the meat. As soon as I scraped the tip of the crab's claw against the crab meat and roe, I almost got sick. Crab croquettes were definitely not for me.

Mr. Firay ended up helping out every other group, and before I knew it, it was the end of the period. The bell rang as I quickly placed a plastic cover over the dead crab parts, writing my name on it, and placing it in the refrigerator where we were storing them. The last student besides me left the room, leaving me along with Mr. Firay. I quickly grabbed my books, heading towards the door.

"Have a good day, Daphne," he said as I walked by.

I stopped immediately, twisting around to look at him in surprise. "What?"

"Have a good day, Daphne?" he reiterated raising an eyebrow.

"You called me Daphne!" I said in amazement.

"Don't I usually call you Daphne?"

"Not in class," I told him, a grin growing on my face.

He smirked, watching me with an amused expression. "Why are you getting so excited?"

"I-I'm not," I denied, feeling my face heat up. "You just only call me 'Ms. Grimm' in school when there are people around… Huh…"

"What?"

"You _do_ only call me Ms. Grimm when people are around," I commented, looking around to make sure the class was actually empty. "Why is that?"

"I don't know," Mr. Firay responded, a mysterious smile appearing on his face.

"But you call everyone else by their first name!"

The door opened, and a group of giggling girls came in. I scowled in annoyance at them. Perfect timing.

"You'd better get going before you're late to class, Ms. Grimm," Mr. Firay commented, checking his watch. "You've got two minutes."

I sighed, brushing past the girls in the doorway. "Bye, Mr. Firay."

\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/\(o_~)/

The rest of the school day passed in a flash. When the final bell rang, I took out my phone to check my messages. There was one new message from Anna. Suddenly I was overcome with nerves. My hands shook as I pressed the open button. Two words stared back at me.

"He's awake."

Relief spread through me, and I had to hold in a cry of excitement. I quickly typed back, asking if she could come pick me up, but the sending failed. My phone had no service. I quickly ran outside, waiting impatiently for my phone to gain bars back. It never did.

"C'mon," I muttered, flipping my phone open and shut in hope to gain at least a little service. "Now's not the time!"

No matter how many times I opened and closed my phone, I still had not service. I growled in frustration. The hospital was way too far for me to walk, and my mom wasn't home. Who could I ask for a ride from?

"Sage!" I gasped, quickly going to his contacts and hitting the call button, forgetting I didn't have service. It wouldn't connect.

Another groan of frustration escaped my lips. I had to see Wendell right now! I had to see he was awake with my own eyes! But first I needed a phone. Maybe I could use a teacher's phone. My eyes widened.

"Mr. Firay!" I cried, out of breath from sprinting to his room. "Help!"

He looked at me with an alarmed expression on his face, immediately standing from his desk, and coming over to me. "What's wrong?" he demanded, quickly scanning my face. "Did something—"

"I need to use your phone!" I told him, now holding a stitch in my side. "It's important! Wendell woke up!"

"He did?" Mr. Firay responded in surprise.

"Yes," I said quickly, "now let me use the phone."

Mr. Firay chuckled, letting me into his room. "Go ahead."

I grabbed the school phone from the wall, quickly pressing the buttons that led to the outside line. When I heard the dial tone, I quickly dialed Sage's phone number. On the second ring it picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hi! It's Daphne," I told him, tapping my foot anxiously. "Can you bring me to the hospital?"

"Why? Is something wrong?" he asked, his voice becoming concerned.

"No," I responded, "Wendell woke up."

"Who are you talking to?" Mr. Firay asked, suddenly appearing behind me.

"Is that Matt?" Sage asked.

"Yes," I told him, and then turned to Mr. Firay. "It's Sage."

"Hi Matt!" Sage shouted, making me wince and pull the phone away from my ear. "Did he hear me?"

"Don't yell," I responded, frowning. "And I don't know. Sage says hi, Mr. Firay."

"Why are you asking him for a ride?" he demanded, frowning at me. "I can give you a ride."

"Aw, he's jealous," Sage commented, letting out a little laugh.

"No, he's not," I responded, feeling a blush creep onto my face. "And will you, Mr. Firay? Right now?"

"Sure," Mr. Firay responded. "I just need to grab my work. Do you plan on staying there for a while?"

"Yeah, why?"

He frowned. "I have somewhere to go at four, so ask Sage if he'll pick you up."

"I can," Sage told me, without needing me to ask.

"He can," I told Mr. Firay, my stomach clenching in excitement. "I'll call you later then, Sage."

"Okay, talk to you soon then."

"Bye."

"I love you," he said in a teasing voice before I could hang up.

I rolled my eyes, a smile spreading across my face. "I love you too, Sage."

Mr. Firay's head snapped to mine as I hung up the phone. He watched me with a frown as I slipped my cell phone back into my pocket. I looked back at him, growing self-conscious.

"What?" I finally asked, raising a hand to my face. Was there something on it?

"Nothing," Mr. Firay said, turning away from me. "Let's go."

I narrowed my eyes in confusion, but followed him out of the classroom anyway. We went to his car, and he opened the passenger door for me. I climbed in and buckled as Mr. Firay got into the driver's side. For some reason, he looked bothered.

I suddenly felt guilty. Was it my fault? Was I ruining some plans he had made? Mr. Firay pulled out of the parking lot, still not saying a word. I fidgeted with my fingers nervously. Finally, I couldn't stand the silence.

"Sorry," I apologized, turning to look at Mr. Firay. "Am I ruining your plans?"

He glanced at me in surprise, and then shook his head, returning his attention to the road. "No. Why?"

"I don't know. You seem bothered," I responded honestly.

Mr. Firay immediately frowned. "Do I?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, is there something I should know?" he asked, his tone growing hard.

"What do you mean…?"

"You know what I mean," he responded, glancing at me again with slightly narrowed eyes.

"No, I don't," I responded, a frown now appearing on my face.

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "Fine, don't tell me. Even though I told you about my past, even though it was private and I've never shared it with anyone but you…"

"What am I supposed to be telling you?" I demanded, growing irritated. "I haven't done anything!"

"Well, never mind then."

"No, not 'never mind'!" I responded, glaring at him now. "Now you have to tell me. I didn't do anything to make you angry at me, right?"

"I'm not angry at you," Mr. Firay said. "I'm just slightly annoyed."

"What? Why?"

"Wendell is at the local hospital, right?" Mr. Firay asked, ignoring me.

I scowled, but still answered his question. "No, he's at Presbyterian."

"Presbyterian?" Mr. Firay asked, looking surprised. "Why is he there?"

"Better intensive care unit," I guessed, shrugging. "But we aren't changing the topic."

Mr. Firay sighed, taking a turn onto the highway that led to the hospital. "I said never mind. It's your life and you can do what you want."

"What am I doing?" I responded in exasperation. "Mr. Firay, just tell me."

"Matt," he corrected.

"I will never call you by your name if you don't tell me," I threatened.

"If I tell you, you might get mad."

I blinked in shock. Was Mr. Firay's tone of voice embarrassed? He looked at me sheepishly, making me more surprised. The sheepish look was a new one too. Was the world coming to an end?

"Now I'm really curious," I said, leaning closer to him. "Tell me."

He cleared his throat. "I thought I said I don't want you to date Sage."

That was not what I was expecting. I raised an eyebrow in confusion. "You did."

"So why are you two still dating?"

"Huh?"

Mr. Firay's hands automatically tightened on the steering wheel. "Sorry, Daphne. I'm just… I don't handle these situations well."

"Wait, first of all, Sage and I aren't dating," I responded, shaking my head. "We've gone on dates, but as friends. I thought we went over this last night…"

Mr. Firay frowned, glancing at me for a split second again. "Then why'd you tell him you loved him?"

My eyes widened. Wait... was Mr. Firay jealous? Jealous of Sage? Jealous, and admitting it? A blush fought its' way onto my face again.

"No, no, no," I responded, fighting the urge to smile. "Friends. We're friends."

"Oh."

"Why does it matter?" I pressed, biting my lip.

"It doesn't," Mr. Firay muttered. "We're here."

I looked up to see the giant hospital displayed in front of me. Mr. Firay drove me up to the entrance, gesturing his head towards the door.

"See you later."

"I'm not leaving until you tell me why me dating Sage matters," I told him, crossing my arms.

He sighed. "I said never mind."

"Fine. Then never mind about me telling you the whole truth about the situation."

I kept my face as straight as I could as I told him that total lie. He narrowed his eyes slightly. I almost smirked. Instead, I reached for the door handle. As soon as my hand came in contact, I heard the click of the locks.

I rolled my eyes. What an old trick. I unlocked the door again, this time holding the lock, and was able to open it. A small smirk of triumph appeared on my face. I turned back to give Mr. Firay a smug look.

"Guess I'll talk to you later."

"Daphne, wait," Mr. Firay demanded, reaching over the seat and grabbing my arm. "I just want you to tell me seriously whether you're dating Sage or not."

"Why should I?" I responded, frowning at him. "What difference does it make?"

"Remember what I said to you the last night? Before we left?"

I frantically forced back the blush that was threatening to come on my face. "What about it?"

"Think about that," he told me, a serious look on his face.

"Huh?"

He let out a small groan of frustration. "Come on, Daphne. Put two and two together."

"Put two and two together…?"

I almost gasped when I realized what he meant. If he was jealous of Sage, then what he said about being my teacher could only mean one thing… I stared at Mr. Firay with my eyes wide. What was I supposed to say? Or did it actually not mean what I thought it meant?

Mr. Firay sighed, placing his forehead against his steering wheel. "Did you figure it out?"

"You're gay and want to be with Sage?" I babbled, not knowing what else to say.

Mr. Firay looked at me so fast I know he must have cricked his neck. He stared at me in incredulity. I forced myself to keep a straight face, and even managed to frown. It was a very hard feat.

"What?"

"I should have known," I said with a sigh, proceeding to get out of the car. "No guy can be as good looking as you and be straight, huh?"

"Daphne? No –wait!"

"Sorry, I've got to go! And I'm not dating Sage, I promise," I told him, turning my back on him. "See you!"

Mr. Firay honked the car horn after me as I speed-walked to the entrance of the hospital. My heart was beating a thousand beats per minute and I felt dizzy. When I came to the hospital doors, I leaned against one for a minute, trying to cool my head.

When I finally calmed down, I groaned, sinking my head into my hands. That could have been considered a confession from Mr. Firay. Something I never believed in my life to be possible. Something I should be jumping up and down and screaming about. But no. I played it off as though Mr. Firay was gay. I groaned again. Unbelievable.

**A/N. **Bwahaha, poor Daphne. But…_phew. _You have no idea how much work went into this. I had to look up Crab Croquettes, and hospitals in NYC…D: But, I'm glad it played off. I'm not sure if the instructions on how to make the crabs flowed right, but I'll fix that soon. And yeah –I know the idea of Daphne not liking crabs is unlikely, but maybe she likes eating them, just not _making _them, right?

Anyways, my friend, Jordan, sent me pictures of her rat dissection –EW! MY GOSH, THAT'S SO GROSS! THE RAT'S FUR WAS OFF AND IT WAS PINK!...*shudders* It was creepy.

Um, yeah! So, maybe, two more updates this week, then the six day update is next. ^^ Yays!

Replies, replies:

Warisha: *gasp* NO CURSING! XD Wahahaha, that's what you get for not being more sneaky when reading FTFT. :D But you do get four extra questions, so you should be able to put up with it.

yellow.r0se: I don't think so, but oh well! Lol, I see. Well, it's not your Blackberry's fault –FF was being annoying yesterday…I mean the day before, hahaha. No one could review or log into their account. Thanks! Daphne appreciates your comment, too. :D Yeah, people were saying that, but I'm saying, "_Wait, you _want _something worse?"_ lol. :D Yeah –I'm glad too. Thanks for the review!

Arisha: I once read a 64 chapter-ed story in two days. :D Thanks! And no, I'm not angry anymore, but thanks for being considerate. :D Thanks. Sorry I didn't update Sunday –FF was being stupid.

killer bunnies: It's been up since…Thursday. 0.0 You only waited a day…Thanks! Aw, I'm glad I made you feel a little better. Hope your sickness lifts up! ^^

Cat: Well, you guys have your account up so **yayaayaya! ***sigh* I have to explain again…it's going to be completely answered in a later chapter. Go back to the prologue and ponder over it. He said, "You never stop loving someone." Diana said in the prologue something like, "I love you, I'm just not _in _love with you." See the difference? Okay, good. Thanks! ^^

**M.J.'s review to Prompts: **Thank you! Your feedback was awesomesauce! ^^ Oooh, I can try that –thanks! :D

~Lara


	38. Chapter 38:

**EDIT:...Did anyone notice, WftTK, IaDL, and SSS all have 14 reviews, and are together in that order? So it looks like -right now- 426, 14, 14, 14, etc. Hahaha -I thought that was cool...**

**A/N.**You can't possibly get mad at me. *nervous look* No way. Promising you a six day update starting _Saturday _should keep you happy if I don't update when I say I am. *hyperventilates*

**I'm sooo sowwiiieee I didn't upppddaatteee yeessstteerrdaaayy!**

There was work –and deviantArt –and work –and friends- and, and...

Yeah. You can't possibly be mad at me for time flying by. So again –I'M SO SOWWIE! But here's a chapter! And one more update tomorrow –I swear I will if FF doesn't break down again...whoa. That means you're getting like, 8 updates in a row. This one, tomorrow's, then start of the six-day-update, which makes eight. YOU CANNOT GET MAD AT ME. Mwahahha.

*cough* Anyways, this chapter's not very filling...

Mr. Firay: Obviously. You failed to include me in this chapter.

Me: Excuse me? You didn't want Daphne to risk finding out the truth, did you? If she found out you were _here, _too...

Mr. Firay: Shut up! People are listening to this! You –reader! Go and read this chapter...*groans* _Gay? _Really? Daphne said I _was gay_. _With SAGE. _Sage of all people.

Me: *pats back comfortingly* The readers liked it, so it's okay.

(I really enjoyed all your reactions. xDDD I'm glad you liked it!)

**As Curlscat pointed out, I forgot the "QotD" last chapter. SO, this is the question –and the winner will be announced Saturday:**

What's the weirdest situation you've been in with your teacher or the weirdest thing you've ever told your teacher? Answer is announced on Saturday if FF doesn't mess with itself again.

**Chapter 38: Almost Normal Again**

"Daphne!"

Wendell looked at me in complete shock, a wide grin spreading across his face. I couldn't help grinning right back at him as I stepped into the white hospital room. Wendell went to move position, but a grimace of pain flashed across his face, and he stopped moving. My grin faltered and was replaced by a concerned expression.

"How are you?" I asked, dragging a chair over to his bedside.

"How am I?" Wendell repeated, raising an eyebrow. "How are you?"

"I'm fine…"

"You haven't changed at all!"

"Was I supposed to?" I responded, growing more confused.

"Well, after three months, I'd expect you to look a tiny bit older."

"What are you talking about?"

Wendell frowned, looking at me like I was an idiot. "I've been unconscious for three months, remember?"

"What? No you haven't," I responded, staring at him questioningly. "You've been out for about two days…"

Wendell's facial expression immediately turned to irritation. "My mother is so going to get it…"

I laughed. "Your mom told you that you were out for three months?"

"Yeah," Wendell responded with a nod. "I freaked out about it for a full hour this morning. I can't believe she tricked me!"

I laughed again, but my breath caught when I saw the bandages around Wendell's chest. He caught me staring and quickly pulled his bed sheet over his chest, sending me a cheesy grin. It didn't help the knot that suddenly appeared in my stomach.

"It's not as bad as it looks…"

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, please, Wendell. Being shot is as bad as it looks. Though, I'm guessing it wouldn't be as painful to you because you're not exactly human."

Wendell gave a small smile. "Good thing this place has a few Everafter doctors. It'd be bad if someone found out I wasn't normal..."

I stared at him. "Don't try changing the subject."

He sighed, rubbing his hand across his face. "Yeah, it was pretty bad at the time…"

"What exactly happened?"

"There's not much too it. I was leaving work, and before I knew it I was surrounded," Wendell explained, sounding like he had explained it a thousand times before. "They asked about Matt, and I told them I didn't know him. They said they'd seen me with him, he tutors me by the way."

"I know, he told me."

"Well anyway. There was a little, er… hand-to-hand violence between us and then one pulled out a gun and that was that," Wendell finished, pursing his lips. "But when I told the police—"

I gasped, making Wendell look at me in surprise.

"What?"

"What did you say to the police? Oh, no… Wendell, did you mention Mr. Firay?" I demanded, growing antsy. "Please say you didn't."

"I didn't," Wendell responded slowly. "Why?"

"It's a long story, Mr. Firay will explain it to you," I told him, waving it off. "As long as you didn't mention him to the cops at all."

Wendell shook his head. "I guess it's a good thing I didn't then, huh. But I did tell them about the gangster who shot me."

"Good."

"Daphne, don't you think this situation is getting too dangerous for us?"

I looked at Wendell, a frown on my face. "It's been too dangerous from the beginning…"

"Then why are you still involved?"

"As of now, there is no way I can get out of this," I told Wendell, leaning back in my seat. "I've sort of dug my own grave…"

"You may have dug your own grave, but the one who gave you the shovel to do so is Firay," Wendell pointed out, a scowl appearing on his face.

"And the one who chose to stay in it is me," I returned.

"What if you bury yourself alive?" Wendell demanded.

"I don't even know what that's supposed to mean!"

"What if you end up in deep trouble? Or dead?" Wendell explained. "Daphne, do you realize I could have died the other night?"

"I know! I'm not stupid."

"You need to space yourself from Firay," Wendell told me, a dead serious look on his face.

I immediately shook my head. "No, it's too late for that. They already know who I am, it's not like not interacting with Mr. Firay will change anything now."

"Then don't get any closer."

Well, too late for that. He basically said he had feelings that he shouldn't have for a student. Or, in simpler terms, love. A blush quickly rose to my face and I stared down at my feet. It seemed too impossible, but there was nothing else I could think that he could have meant…

Wendell narrowed his eyes at me suspiciously. "Daphne… did something happen between you and him?"

"W-what? No!" I responded quickly, waving my hands in front of me. "Ha, are you kidding? No way…"

Wendell rolled his eyes. "Daphne, don't lie. You're an open book, I can see right through you."

"It doesn't matter, because he thinks I think he's gay, probably."

"… I don't think I want to know now."

"Good," I responded, running a hand through the tangles in my hair. "Let's just say, it's something that could be favorable for me…"

"He's confessed his creepy, pedophilic, love for you?"

I scowled at Wendell. "First, it's not pedophilic, because I'll be eighteen in about two weeks. Second, he'll only be four years older –physically- than me, and third, it's not creepy. Sabrina got married to Puck and he's four thousand –Mr. Firay's only a few years younger. And no, he didn't say that… directly."

"Directly?"

"That's what I said."

"So he hinted at it?" Wendell prodded, a frown slipping onto his face. "Daphne, if the gangsters find out if he has feelings for you, won't that make it worse?"

"What? Why would that make them want me more? That's… That's…"

"Daphne?"

I stared at Wendell, a look of alarm on my face. Bryant wanted Mr. Firay dead partly because Mr. Firay stole his girlfriend back then… so what if for revenge he wanted to take me from Mr. Firay because he thought Mr. Firay cared about me? But where would Bryant even get the idea Mr. Firay cared for me? I'd been with Sage the first time we met…

"Hello, Daphne?"

I snapped out of my thoughts and caught eye contact with Wendell. He frowned at me, a worried expression on his face. I quickly arranged my features into a nonchalant expression.

"I understand how you feel about him, and it's not like I'm going to stop you two from being together," Wendell started, a sigh escaping his lips, "but I'm more worried over our safety than your love life."

"If they already think something is up, why would it matter?"

"Because they might not have proof right now, and they could get it."

"They're not going to wait around until they have proof, Wendell," I responded, rolling my eyes. "They're gangsters. Once they decide on something, I doubt they're going to stray from it."

"You act like you're a gang expert," Wendell commented with a snort.

"I don't know the first thing about gangs," I told him honestly. "But I know enough to know they do what they want. Anyone knows that."

Wendell sighed, resting back on his bed. "Well, try to stay out of trouble for at least three weeks."

"Why?" I asked, giving him a quizzical look.

"I'm going to be stuck in here until then, so I won't be able to help you out of sticky situations," he responded with a grin.

"And get yourself almost killed again?"

Wendell stayed quiet, directing his eyes away from mine. "It's not like I knew they were going to get me…"

"You're always worried about my safety, Wendell," I told him, a frown pulling at my lips. "You need to be more worried about yourself. I worry twice as hard for you because you don't worry enough."

"Well who's worried about you then?"

"Mr. Firay," I responded simply. "And we both know it's safe to say he's probably the best to look after me."

Wendell opened his mouth to argue, but after a moment he closed it. He let out another sigh. "As much as I hate to admit it, you're right."

"See—"

"But he's still the one who got you into this mess in the first place, so it's only fair he do his best to protect you."

Now it was my turn to sigh. "He does."

"And I don't think telling you he loves you is going to help," Wendell insisted stubbornly. "Daphne, you know they are targeting people close to him. If they found out you were his lover then—"

"We're not lovers!" I denied, feeling my face heat up.

Wendell rolled his eyes. "An indirect confession is still a confession, and even if it wasn't, it's obvious he loves you in a way a teacher should not love a student."

"Those were almost his exact words…"

The words that made the impossible, possible. Mr. Firay loved me. Me. Out of all the people in the world, it was me who he fell for. He hadn't said it directly, but what else could he mean? A smile was spreading across my face. He loved me! His feelings for me must have replaced his feelings for Diana.

"But since obviously you love him back, there's no stopping the two of you from being together once either of you directly confesses. And when that happens, don't come crying to me when a gangster shoots you. Actually… Daphne? Are you even listening to me?"

"It's unbelievable, huh," I said, now grinning at Wendell. "Mr. Firay of all people…"

Wendell shook his head. "Obviously you weren't…"

I gasped, remembering earlier. "Crap! He still thinks I think he's gay! But Wendell, I didn't know what to say! It was so embarrassing when I figured it out, all I could think then was that I needed to get out of the car because I didn't know what to say back! And then I just blurted out he was jealous because he wanted Sage and—"

"Daphne! Stop being such a girl!" Wendell interrupted, clapping his hands together loudly.

I pouted at him. "But I am a girl…"

"But I don't want to hear you freaking out over a guy. Save that for Ariana."

"But Ariana doesn't know," I groaned.

"Tell her."

I narrowed my eyes. "And get her caught up in this mess as well? I don't think so."

"Well, don't tell her about that part," Wendell responded, nodding his head. "You and I are enough."

"Just one of us is enough," I corrected with a small laugh.

"You and Ariana are best friends, right? So you should tell her all your love problems."

"You're just saying that so you don't have to hear them, aren't you?"

"Maybe," Wendell commented with a grin.

"But Ariana won't let me hear the end of it if she finds out I'm in love with Mr. Firay."

The sound of the door opening from behind me made me jump violently. Wendell looked over my shoulder, and a grin came onto his face. I turned slowly to see Ariana entering the room with a plastic bag, and a large grin on her face.

"I knew it!" she cried loudly, setting down the plastic bag. "I knew you liked him!"

Horror crossed my face. How much had she heard? When did she get here? I glanced back at Wendell, who looked relatively calm. What if she had heard about the gang thing? I turned back to Ariana, licking my lips nervously.

"Uh, how much, um, of that did you hear?"

"Just the last sentence, but it said it all," Ariana responded, wagging her eyebrows. "I knew you'd end up falling for his charm one way or the other!"

Relief washed through me, and I hung my head, chuckling. I could deal with Ariana knowing about how I felt about Mr. Firay. I couldn't deal another close friend of mine getting caught up in the gang. Ariana hummed triumphantly, pulling up a seat next to me.

"It was only a matter of time," she commented in a singsong voice. "And I knew it from the start! You two had an unnatural connection! I told you it was fate!"

Wendell snorted and I rolled my eyes. "It's not fate, Ariana."

"Close enough," she responded, her wide grin still in place. "Have you guys kissed?"

"Ariana!"

"What?"

"We're not even… I can't— He can't even— No!" I finally responded, blushing furiously. That one time before didn't count.

"He has to like you back! Who wouldn't?"

"He does like her back," Wendell interjected.

"Wendell," I snapped, glowering at him.

Ariana's eyes were wide with excitement. "He does? How do you know? Tell me! _Dime, dime, dime! _I want to know!"

I sighed. Ariana wasn't going to let this drop. "He sort of indirectly confessed—"

"He confessed first?" Ariana gasped.

I held up my finger. "Let me finish. He indirectly confessed, but I kind of turned it around on him because I panicked…"

"What'd you say?"

"Um… that he was gay and wanted Sage…"

Ariana looked at me with a straight face for a few moments before bursting out laughing. I frowned at her, waiting for her to stop. When she finally did, she looked back up at me, her grin back in place I crossed my arms.

"It's not funny."

"Oh, yes it is," Ariana responded. "Only you, Daphne. You would say that."

"I didn't know what else I was supposed to say!" I argued, feeling my face heat up in embarrassment. "I was embarrassed!"

"Who's Sage?"

"Oh, he's Mr. Firay's friend. Well I guess he's my friend too now," I responded, brushing a stray hair out of my face. "I'll have to introduce you to him one day."

"Oh! Was he the man that answered your phone the other day? When I called to tell you my mom wouldn't let me leave the house?"

I thought to back then for a moment, and nodded. "Yeah. He brought me to the hospital."

"How old is he?" Ariana asked.

"Uh… twenty."

"You've been hanging out with a twenty year old guy?" Wendell said in a surprised voice. "Since when?"

"For a while," I responded, furrowing my eyebrows together. "I could have sworn I've mentioned him…"

Both Wendell and Ariana shook their heads. I shrugged. Why did it even matter?

"Is he single?" Ariana asked.

"Who?"

"Sage."

"Why do you want to know…?"

"In case things don't work out with Mr. Firay," Ariana started, "you can go with him, right? Is he cute?"

I blushed again, glaring at Ariana. "Ariana, just stop. I don't like Sage like that. And no one ever said Mr. Firay and I can't even be together, it's illegal."

"Only until your birthday," Ariana pressed. "And that's only two weeks away! You're so close!"

"Yeah, it may be two weeks until it's legal," I agreed. "But it's still against school rules."

Ariana opened her mouth, but abruptly shut it. A frown appeared on her face. I smirked smugly.

"Didn't think of that, did you?"

"No one will know," Ariana said, her smile returning.

I sighed. "Ariana…"

"Daphne, you can't deny your feelings."

"I'm not!" I argued. "I'm just stating the truth! If something happened between Mr. Firay and myself and someone found out, both of us would get in trouble. He'd be fired, and I could be suspended or expelled."

"She's got a point there, Ari…"

Ariana frowned again, a thoughtful expression appearing on her face. I relaxed back into my chair, turning to Wendell, who had the same expression as Ariana. I wasn't making excuses as to why Mr. Firay and I couldn't be together. I wanted to be together. But I didn't want to get him into trouble.

"Well," Ariana started, breaking the silence. "They do say love breaks all boundaries."

"What boundaries is this breaking?" I responded, rolling my eyes.

"Student and teacher?" Wendell guessed.

"Exactly," Ariana responded with a nod. "A forbidden relationship. An illicit relationship…"

"A proscribed relationship," Wendell interjected a grin on his face. "An illegal relationship."

"It's not illegal," I pointed out, not finding their game amusing.

"Technically it is."

"A proscriptive relationship_! Una relación __proscriptiva_!" Ariana cried.

"Since when do you know such big words?" I joked, shaking my head.

"I looked them up in advance in case a situation like this arose," she responded with a casual shrug.

I stared at her. Was she serious? She looked back at me, the grin on her face widening.

"Are you serious?"

Ariana laughed. "No! I just pay attention in English… unlike some people." She looked at Wendell pointedly.

"English is boring," Wendell complained. "Even though it's my first language –it's stupid. Stupid books, stupid vocabulary, stupid essays. There's nothing fun."

"It's so styu-pid," Ariana mimicked in her best British accent.

"What's with the accents?" Wendell demanded. "I don't speak like that! Do I?"

"You do, good sir! Quite a lot." She winked at me. "Aye, Daphne?"

"You know how I am with accents," I said with a laugh. "I'm not even going to try…"

Wendell and Ariana laughed too, and for a moment I forgot where we were. It was the simple, carefree, way it used to be before the whole gang incident. It felt almost normal again. It didn't feel like Wendell was in the hospital with bullet wounds. It felt like we were hanging out at my house after school like we used to. And it was nice.

But, I knew I couldn't get used to it, and it'd be a long time until everything was okay and safe, again.

**A/N. **Told you it was unsatisfying. Bleh. Again:

What's the weirdest situation you've been in with your teacher or the weirdest thing you've ever told your teacher?

So...tomorrow –if FF doesn't shut down- I will update! Bye byes! AND HAPPY BELATED VALENTINES DAY!

~Lara


	39. Chapter 39:

**A/N. **...holy crap. I forgot that this was 'The Chapter'. (I think Curlscat and I talked about this along the lines...or maybe that was the other The Chapter for the ACI...XD I'm spouting nonsense, bla bla) But...YAY! I'M SO EXCITED! Though, I'm sure you'll be reacting differently. ;D Mwahhaa...mwahaha...MWAHAHAH! Jk. *ahem*

I also got a PM from a reader who-shall-not-be-named (no, not my friend Voldie) but will be known as Me Know You (has nothing to do with the book that says that…dedication in the next chapter if you figure out what book that is!) who asked if Future Sabrina or Daphne would appear. The question was out of the blue, but **No Future Selves are appearing in this story. **So, if anything seems like that...it's not. ^^

So...read? Please? And thanks for the answers to the QotD/W thing. The winner's announced tomorrow!

And to some anon. reviewer: Dude, I know I said I would update at night for eight days, so don't get mad at me. _Hence the term at night_. Right here where I am, it's dawn. Not night. So I don't want to hear, "Hey, you promised to update at night..." Please. No complaints. I'm being nice enough and updating _eight times _in a row. But I'm not mad, just...peeved, haha. But thanks for the review!

I hope other readers see that so they will not pester me about updating. ^^ Sorry for that...kind of serious moment.

Anyways, chapter 39!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 39: Replacement<strong>

"What are you doing?"

My eyes flew wide in shock and I took a sharp inhale of breath, turning around to see Daniel grinning at me. Immediately, I relaxed, letting go of my breath.

"Why are you waiting outside the Home EC room?" Daniel asked, raising his eyebrows. "Can't handle the smell? I'm sure the crabs are okay by now..."

"Uh, sure," I responded, directing my gaze to my feet.

"Wimp," Daniel joked with a small laugh.

A small forced laugh left my lips as well. I couldn't tell Daniel the reason I didn't want to go in there was because of Mr. Firay. My palms were sweating at just the idea of talking to him after last night. It was going to be so awkward! I chewed on my lip, reaching for the door handle, and then pulling my hand away at the last second.

C'mon, Daphne. Man up!

Taking a deep breath, I grabbed the doorknob with my shaky hand. Why was I getting so nervous? It's not like we could talk about what happened last night in class; there were too many students around. But it'd still be awkward. I sighed. I'd have to face him sooner or later.

Without hesitation, I quickly pulled the door open. To my surprise, an old man was sitting at the teacher's desk. He had a head full of white hair, and a small tuff of it sat on top of his head. I frowned, surveying the man with my eyes. He was someone I'd never seen before.

"Umm, where's Mr. Firay?" I asked, looking around the room quickly.

"What?"

"Where's Mr. Firay?" I repeated, louder this time.

"Come closer, I can't hear you."

Fighting the urge to roll my eyes, I walked up to the teacher's desk and leant over it, speaking loudly and clearly. "Where is Mr. Firay?"

"What?"

Was he kidding? I stared at him incredulously. The old man cocked his head to the side, and then realization flashed across his face.

"Hold on, I think my hearing aid is off…"

This time I did roll my eyes, but a grin also made its' way onto my face. The old man fiddled with the hearing aid on his ear, and then looked up at me expectantly.

"Is Mr. Firay here today?" I asked once more.

"Oh, no. He's absent today. I'm his substitute."

For some reason, I felt disappointed. Mr. Firay had taken the day off? Was he sick? Did something happen? Disappointment was quickly replaced with worry. I cleared my throat. "Is he okay? Is something wrong?"

"No, no, he's fine!" the old man responded, speaking too loudly. "From what I hear it's just a personal day off."

I relaxed, nodding my head. "Okay. Thanks."

"It's nice to know young people these days still care about their teachers," the old man commented, smiling at me.

Like? That was an understatement. I blushed, shaking my thoughts away. "Haha, well we wouldn't want to have to have a substitute for too long…"

The old man nodded, but said nothing more. I quickly escaped to my seat, a frown appearing on my face. It was funny how much my mood could drop after just finding out Mr. Firay wasn't in school today. That was weird too, since Mr. Firay was always in school.

With a shock, I realized what the reason Mr. Firay wasn't here could be. Was it that he was avoiding me? Horror dawned on me. It probably was, since I basically said I thought he was gay! I slumped lower in my seat, holding in a groan. Me and my stupid, big, lying mouth.

The rest of the day passed quickly and before I knew it the final bell had rung. I was planning on visiting Wendell, so I headed home straight away. As I came to my drive way, I narrowed my eyes in confusion. My mom's car was in the driveway.

"Mom?" I called as I opened the door to my house, dropping my back down and kicking off my shoes. "You here?"

"Bedroom!" a muffled voice responded from the upstairs.

Following the sound of her voice, I found her in her bedroom, putting clothing into a suitcase. She gave me a quick smile when I entered, but returned her attention back to folding the clothing in front of her. I narrowed my eyes in confusion.

"Why are you packing? And home early?"

"Business trip," my mom responded. "I got out early to pack because I have to leave tonight."

"Gee mom, thanks for warning me in advance," I responded, shaking my head. "I didn't ask Ariana if I could stay the night."

"Honey I'm going to be gone all weekend, and it seems that your father and Basil are still stuck in New Jersey –his stupid boss. But I thought I told you I'd be gone. Guess I forgot…"

"How could you forget to tell me something like that?" I demanded, looking at her in shock. "I've never stayed home alone for more than a night!"

"Don't worry," my mom responded, waving her hand. "I wasn't going to leave you by yourself. I arranged a place for you to stay already."

"Wendell is still in the hospital though," I pointed out. "I'd feel like a moocher at Ana's."

My mom shook her head. "No, you won't be staying at Ana's."

"Then whose?"

"Your handsome teacher's place."

My mouth went dry and I stared at my mom like she had three heads. Well, she might as well have three heads since she was thinking like an alien. I small laugh escaped my lips.

"That's funny mom."

"Is there something wrong?" my mom responded, furrowing her brow in confusion. "I thought you two got along?"

I blushed slightly. "Um, we do… but mom, he's my teacher. I can't stay at his house. He'd get in trouble and so would I! Surely that's against school rules."

"No, it's not, since I'm the one who asked him to look after you while I'm gone. It's a teacher's duty to watch over a student. And he seemed more than willing to help out."

I stared at my mom in disbelief. When was she going to pull the punch line? I couldn't spend the weekend at Mr. Firay's after what happened! It was embarrassing enough just to think about coming face-to-face with him after last night, let alone staying with him! Was my mom crazy?

"Are you really serious?"

"Yes," my mom responded, sighing. "Even though you're almost eighteen, it's still dangerous to spend the whole weekend alone. I don't want anything to happen to you."

"No, I understand. It's fine. I'm just a little surprised. When are you leaving?"

"A few hours. I still have to go get some groceries from the grocery store for the trip. I hate paying for hotel food."

"When am I going to Mr. Firay's?"

"You're supposed to call, um, Paul?"

I raised an eyebrow. "I don't know any Paul…"

"Hold on," my mom said, holding up her finger. "That's not his name. George? No, that's not it either. Sam?"

"Sage?" I guessed.

"That's it! You're supposed to call him for a ride whenever you're ready," my mom told me. "Matt has something to do today until around seven."

I frowned slightly. That "something" was probably him going to visit Diana. A little jealousy arrived in me, but I quickly threw it away. She was in the past. Mr. Firay loved me now, not Diana. But I wanted to know why he always seemed to be visiting her these days.

"Speaking of which, who is Sage?"

"He's Mr. Firay's friend. And I guess mine, too."

"How old is he?" my mom asked suspiciously.

"Twenty."

"You trust this guy enough to drive you places?" my mom prodded, watching me intently. "Is he trustworthy?"

I laughed, rolling my eyes. "He's very trustworthy mom. Don't worry about it, Sage is a good guy."

"Okay," my mom responded, but still didn't sound convinced. "If you need anything, just call me…"

"Actually, after you go grocery shopping will you give me a ride to the hospital? I want to visit Wendell. I can ask Sage to pick me up there after."

My mom nodded. "Sure, but it won't be for another few hours. Why don't you do your homework in the meantime?"

I made a face. Homework. Ew. However, I did as my mom suggested and went to my room to start. By the time I finished, my mom was ready to leave. I quickly slammed my biology book closed and rushed to my closet to grab a pair of clothes. The first thing I found was a pair of washed blue jeans, so I grabbed those and a purple long-sleeve shirt, stuffing them in my side bag.

"Daphne? You coming?"

"Hold on!" I responded, quickly going to the bathroom and grabbing my hairbrush and toothbrush.

"Grab an umbrella!" my mom shouted up the stairs. "It looks like it's going to rain!"

Sighing, I grabbed the umbrella from my room before I descended the stairs. My mom was waiting by the door, her car keys in her hand. She smiled, turning and opening the front door. I followed her out, shutting and locking the door behind me.

"Am I seriously going to Mr. Firay's? Or did you actually make plans for me to go to Ariana's house instead?"

"You're going to Matt's," my mom responded, raising an eyebrow. "Is it really that big of a deal?"

"No!" I responded quickly so she wouldn't get suspiciously. "It's just a little weird."

"Okay…"

The drive to the hospital didn't take long. When we arrived, I quickly unbuckled, grabbing my bag from the car floor. My mom leaned over and kissed me on the cheek.

"Be careful! And be safe! And make sure you eat properly," my mom said, frowning at me. "Make sure this Sage guy remembers to pick you up! I have Matt's cell phone number, so I'll check in with him around eight to see if you're back."

"Mom, don't worry, I'll be fine."

"Alright, see you Sunday night."

"Bye, mom," I responded, getting out of the car, and shutting the door behind me.

o(0_0)oo(0_0)o o(0_0)o o(0_0)o o(0_0)oFISTBUMPS o(0_0)o o(0_0)o o(0_0)o o(0_0)oo(0_0)o

Wendell looked up at me eagerly as I entered his hospital room. I deposited my belongings by the door and pulled up a chair next to his bed, flopping down on it. Wendell raised an eyebrow.

"What's up?"

"My mom is making me stay at Mr. Firay's for the weekend."

"Making you?" Wendell repeated sounding skeptical. "Don't you want to?"

I blushed slightly, adverting my gaze. "Um, at a different time, yes, but right now, no, because it's going to be really awkward. I lucked out because Mr. Firay wasn't at school today, but I'm supposed to go to his house after I leave here..."

"Well, then now's a good time to make your move."

I raised an eyebrow, eying Wendell suspiciously. "What?"

"You know, make more progress in your relationship," he responded with a shrug.

"Aren't you all anti-Firay?"

"I want to see how this plays out," Wendell responded, a smirk appearing on his face. "I want to see how long you guys can last."

"It's not a game, Wendell," I responded with a sigh.

"To me it is," he responded with a grin.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, deciding to change the subject. "Any different from yesterday?"

"Well I can sit up without it hurting as much, but that might be due to that magic juice I've been taking. Oh, and the doctors put magic salve on my wounds, so they feel a lot better."

"...magic juice?"

Wendell shrugged. "I thought it was weird, too. But it tastes good –like really fresh strawberries or something fruity. "

"How long are you staying here?"

"The doctors are saying I can leave the November 17th," Wendell told me, frowning. "That's a day after your birthday, so I was hoping we could celebrate it when I get out. With Ariana and everyone else, too."

"Sure," I responded, smiling. "Though you might want to take it easy…"

"I'll be fine by then! Well, okay, I won't be fine, but I'll be much better," Wendell responded, grinning. "Being shot won't stop me."

The smile automatically dropped from my face as guilt set in again. I couldn't help but feel this accident was somehow my fault. Of course there was no way I could have known Wendell would be attacked that night, but still… It was my fault he was involved with the whole gang thing in the first place.

"Daphne, stop feeling guilty."

I looked at Wendell in surprise. "How'd you know what I was feeling?"

"I'm not stupid."

"But I can't help it," I complained, crossing my arms. "It's only natural."

"I don't care, it's not your fault," Wendell responded, frowning at me. "If you want to place the blame on someone, put it on Firay."

"It isn't his fault they attacked you though!"

"There you go. Nor is it mine, nor yours. So stop wallowing."

"I'm not wallowing," I muttered, my face heating up. "I'm just feeling… like, survivor's guilt or something like that."

"But I'm alive," Wendell pointed out, a small laugh erupting from him.

"I said 'or something like that'!"

"I know what you said."

I rolled my eyes. "Stop talking, Wendell."

"I have a question. Does everyone at school know what happened?" Wendell inquired, pursing his lips. "I hope not. Only you, Firay, Ariana, and this Sage guy know I'm in here and I'd like to keep it that way."

"Why?" I responded in surprise.

"I don't need unnecessary attention," Wendell responded, shrugging. "I'd prefer to keep this a secret."

"I won't tell anyone then," I promised. "But what do you want me to say when they notice you're not in school? Two and a half weeks is a long time."

"Just say I have some strange sickness."

I laughed. "Okay, I'll look a good one up."

"So, tell me what I've been missing in school. I don't want to get too far behind…"

For the next hour or so I told Wendell about everything we were learning, and about how I have to make crab croquettes with Mr. Firay since he's out, and also about the old man who was the substitute today since Mr. Firay was out.

"I was looking forward to preparing the crabs," Wendell commented when I was done.

"I was looking forward to you looking forward to so I didn't have to do anything," I responded with a sigh. "Mr. Firay makes me do most of the cooking."

Wendell glanced at the clock that was on his night table. He leaned over and grabbed a piece of paper off of it and a pen, bringing it to his lap. I watched as he proceeded to scribble something down on it, and then he handed it to me. I took it and looked at it in confusion.

"Could you go get my dinner?" he requested. "You just have to bring the slip to the kitchen, and then they'll bring the food when it's done."

"Aw, lucky me, I get to help the crippled!" I said, scanning his food choices. "It will be my pleasure."

"Next time you come, bring me a burger or something. Hospital food is gross."

I laughed. "I'll make sure to do that. Be right back."

"Au revoir!" Wendell called after me as I exited the room.

The trip to the kitchen took longer than it should have. I got lost twice, and even the directions from the doctors and nurses didn't help. I handed the slip of paper to one of the kitchen workers, and then started back to Wendell's room. As I was walking down the hall, I realized I had taken the wrong turn and was now in the wrong section of the hospital. When I was about to turn around, something caught my attention. Or rather someone.

Mr. Firay was walking down the hallway with a tray of food in his hand. I blinked in surprise. Why was he at the hospital? After a second of hesitation I decided to follow him. For a few minutes I followed him down the halls, matching my steps to his and praying he wouldn't turn around.

Finally, he came to a door and I froze as he turned. Luckily he didn't look around before he entered. I slowly crept up to the door, and tried to peek through the window. To my disappointment, there was a paper covering the little window on the door. I sighed, taking a step back.

My breath caught when my eyes landed on the nameplate on the wall. Pierce. That was Diana's last name…

Suddenly the door began to open. My heart leapt into my throat as I quickly looked around for a place to hide. There was another door to my left, so I quickly opened it and stepped in, shutting it behind me quickly. A few seconds Mr. Firay walked by the door. I sighed in relief.

"Are you here to give me my sponge bath?"

I jumped violently, twisting around to see an old man peering at me eagerly. He tiled his head to the side.

"Are you?"

"Um, no… I'll send someone in though," I responded, clearing my throat. "Yeah… I'll do that now…"

I opened the door again and stuck my head out, peering both ways. Mr. Firay was nowhere in sight. Stepping out into the hallway again, I closed the door to the old man's room and turned back to the other room. Should I go in?

"Hey!"

Did everyone want to scare me today? I turned to see a nurse frowning at me.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Um, I…" I hesitated, trying to think of a good excuse. "I'm visiting my, uh… sister."

The nurse studied me for a minute and then blinked in realization. "Oh. You're a Pierce?"

"Sure…"

"Well go in then, you can't be loitering the halls. If someone else catches you, you'll have to go back to the waiting room," she told me.

I nodded, turning back to the door. Now I had no choice. Holding my breath, I opened the door and walked in. A woman with dark brown hair was sitting on a hospital bed with her back turned towards me. When she heard me enter, she turned and my eyes widened in surprise. Her expression became shocked as well.

It was almost like I was staring into my own reflection! Her eyes were the same exact shade as mine, and so was her hair. The only difference was our facial structure, and she looked a little taller, but I couldn't quite tell since she was sitting.

A hand went to my mouth. "Are you Diana?"

The woman raised an eyebrow. "My name isn't Diana…"

I relaxed slightly. So this girl wasn't Mr. Firay's ex-girlfriend? Maybe she was Diana's sister. The picture I saw of Diana looked slightly like me, but this girl and I were shockingly alike. If this woman was a few years younger, we could almost be twins.

"What are you doing in my room?" the woman inquired, a frown on her face.

"Oh, I'm um…" I blushed, staring at my feet. "Wrong room, sorry," I finally lied.

The woman laughed, waving her hands. "It's fine, it happens. I was just curious."

"Is your sister's named Diana?" I blurted out, looking up at her again.

She shook her head, giving me a confused look. "No, I don't have a sister. Why?"

"No reason," I responded, growing even more confusing. Who was this girl then? Obviously Mr. Firay knew her. "Can I ask your name?"

"My name is—"

Suddenly the door opened again. My eyes shot open and I panicked, looking around for a place to hide, but it was too late.

"Daphne," a voice I recognized as Mr. Firay's started, and I felt my heart sink. "They vending machine is out of orange soda, do you want something else?"

What? Confused, I turned to face Mr. Firay. His eyes landed on mine and they widened in shock. If I didn't know better, I would have thought he'd seen a ghost. His face paled, and his eyes shot to the girl in the hospital bed and then back to me.

"Daphne," he breathed, a look of horror on his face.

"What? I want orange soda!" the woman complained from the bed.

Now I was even more confused. "Mr. Firay?"

"You two know each other?" the brunette asked and I looked over my shoulder to see her looking at us. "Is she a friend, Matt?"

"She's one of my students," Mr. Firay responded in a tight voice.

"Really? What's her name?"

A frown appeared on my face and I turned back to the girl. I was standing right here. She didn't have to ask him. "My name is Daphne."

The woman's eyes widened in shock. "You're kidding!"

"No, why?"

"My name is Daphne too!"

There was a small groan from Mr. Firay, and my heart skipped a beat, and then started beating ten times faster than normal. I turned to Mr. Firay who was giving me a guilty look.

"Is this? Is this Diana?" I whispered, my palms starting to sweat. "Is it?"

"Yes," Mr. Firay responded, nodding briskly.

"Is there something wrong?" Daphne asked, peering at me worriedly. "You look like you're going to be sick."

"Daphne, I can explain," Mr. Firay started, reaching out a hand.

I slapped his hand away, glaring at him. It made sense now. The reason why Mr. Firay singled me out so early in the school year, the reason why he thought he loved me. I was a replacement for the other Daphne.

"It's perfect how we look the same and have the same name, isn't it, Firay?" I said quietly, my voice having a hard edge to it. "How great."

"Daphne, listen—" Mr. Firay started, but I cut him off.

"You used me as a replacement," I whispered, feeling my eyes starting to water.

"Daphne—"

"Don't say my name!" I nearly shouted, slapping his hand away when he put it out again. "Move!"

"What's wrong?" Daphne asked in surprise. "Matt?"

I shoved Mr. Firay aside as hard as I could and started out of the room, angry tears threatening to spill my eyes. Refusing to let them spill, I blinked them away rapidly.

"Daphne! Wait!" Mr. Firay demanded, grabbing my arm. "Listen to me!"

"Let go!" I growled, ripping my arm away from his.

"Daphne!"

I walked swiftly down the hospital hallways, keeping my eyes on the ground. Mr. Firay was following me; I could hear his footsteps and calls to me. I ignored him, my chest clenching painfully. As soon as I reached the hospital exit, I felt Mr. Firay take a hold of my arm again.

"Leave me alone," I ordered, glaring at him.

"Daphne," he said in an exasperated voice. "Just let me explain—"

"Explain how you used me? I don't care!" I cried, trying to pull my arm away from him.

He sighed and held on tighter. As a desperate attempt to make him let go, I kicked him in the shin as hard as I could. He didn't even look phased. In fact, he looked amused. I didn't find anything funny about it.

"Let go, or I'll scream," I warned.

"Daphne, please."

"One…"

Mr. Firay let go and I automatically took off running. I didn't want to hear his explanation, or excuses, or apologies. Not right now. Right now I just needed time to myself.

"Daphne!" Mr. Firay yelled after me. "Daphne! Stop! Where are you going?"

I ignored him, continuing to run through the parking lot. It was dark now, but I could care less. I didn't know where I was going, but I knew I wanted to get away from Mr. Firay.

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **...How's your day been? Gosh, you guys are lucky you get a six-day-update –this would've been a major cliffy for you all. Lucky, lucky Pucks...

Again –question of the week/day is: What's the weirdest situation you've been in with your teacher or the weirdest thing you've ever told your teacher?

Replies? Replies.

Countrygirl: Really? Cool! BOSCO STICKS FTW! Though, everyone in my grade made it under 12 minutes –if we hadn't, we'd have to _run again. _No one wanted that, lol. I thought it was only my school, too. Do you guys get ice cream for $1 at your school?

Dat Girl: …lying? Whaa? Wait, you meaning giving yourself a fake name? Oh, I see. Lol, a dirty crook, huh? Oh, thanks! PSSSH. Everyone thinks that just because this isn't a total Puckabrina story that they won't like it. Don't judge a book by its cover I always say! ^^ Thanks! ^^ Haha, I like smiley faces –text speech, not so much. Thanks!

Rosebud143: Thanks! ^^ …OMG, are you serious? That's rofl worthy! Thanks! I know –no updating is suckish.

() or Eleni: Hi, newbie! ^^ Welcome to SG FanFiction! Whoooa! What happened after that? Did he just brush it off and was like, "Oops." or was he like, "Um, um, why were you on top of me?" or something? XDDD I shall call you Eleni, then!

Sorry to any other anon. reviews I didn't reply to –I have to practice piano for my morning class tomorrow.

Paalam! You only will have to wait about 24 hours for the next update!...wait, probably less, because there's not school and I have like an hour of free time after piano…so, probably earlier! ^^ Now, _paalam!_

~Lara


	40. Chapter 40:

**A/N. **I congratulate Eleni for being the 444th reviewer! You all know how much I love the number 4, so I felt like announcing this. XD May this forever be your lucky number: Anything that has a four in it. :D

I don't really want to talk about the chapter because I'm afraid I might spill something, but I want to say I REALLY enjoyed all your reviews -you all were fairly shocked! I'm glad I got the effect I wanted! But yeah, if any of you guessed, the person who PM-ed me, who I called Me Know You (no one guess who that was D:) was just me. I wanted you all to know that there would be no future Daphne's in advance so you wouldn't start thinking that the "Daphne Pierce" was her from the future. They're both two different people. So...yeah. ^^

Winner of the QotD/W: Rosebud143's review: (A bit edited to be read better ^^)

_This chapter wasn't bad. Not filling, but it isn't bad. And the strangest thing that happened with my teacher was back in sixth grade. I asked my substitute teacher what time it was, and she reached into her…"top"…_(Lara: I edited this out because of the younger audience ;D) _and she grabbed her phone and she told me the time. She put it back in as if it was natural to have your phone there._

BAHAHAHA. That was so funny. Disturbing, but really funny!

My answer: Hm, hm, hm…I think this was last year or so. My science class could _not _stop yapping and my teacher got really tired of it, and decided to say, "IN HIGHSCHOOL YOU PUT A CONDOM ON A BANANA!" to try and shut us up. Our reactions: :O Bahahaha, but she loves me (teacher's pet, I know), so I wasn't shocked that she was mad. We stopped talking after that. XD But that seriously was funny…oh, another banana/teacher incident in 1st grade: My friend couldn't open her banana during lunch, so my teacher was going to open it for her, but she pretended to call her husband on the phone, saying, "Hey, hunny! Are you coming to lunch today? Great! See you soon!" then she peeled the banana and gave it to my friend. A few minutes later, my teacher's husband came into the cafeteria. We were all like, "OMG! IS SHE SOME SORT OF WIZARD?" XDDD Weird, or what?

Um...read on? Hopefully you're not too mad at Mr. Firay. And say a friendly hello to Sabrina's short appearance in this chapter!

**Chapter 40: Hurt**

The sky above me grumbled threateningly as my feet slapped against the black asphalt. My lungs were burning, but I kept running. The streets were empty and quiet, making the despairing thoughts in my head loud and clear.

I had been used.

Mr. Firay had used me.

I was a replacement.

Tears of anger, embarrassment, sadness, and helpless welled up in my eyes, a few spilling over, making my vision l blurry. I tried to hold in my sobs, but they managed to come out as I gasped for the breath I desperately needed. Running with my chest already feeling constricted wasn't the smartest of ideas.

Suddenly I choked on my own sob and I stopped, coughing violently. When I was done coughing I looked up to realize I was in front of the park. My mouth went dry at the sight of the sign. If I was near the park, that meant I was near the downtown area.

Anxiety suddenly took over all my feelings and I spun around in a circle, my eyes wary. Great. Now I was going to be paranoid. Figuring it'd be safest in a public park, I entered the gates and started jogging down the path that led to the other entrance of the park, further away from the downtown. It was better being safe than sorry.

I collapsed on one of the benches by the pond, breathing heavily. A slight breeze ruffled my hair and blew some of it into my face. I kept it there, lying back on the bench and gazing at the sky. Barely any stars were visible through the ominous looking clouds that hung in it. Another low grumble of thunder filled my ears.

My phone vibrated in my pocket. After a moment of hesitation I pulled it out and looked at it. It was a text from Mr. Firay. My chest clenched again and I quickly deleted the message. I couldn't handle talking to him.

Part of me knew I should have let him explain. But how could I when he kept the fact that his ex-girlfriend had the same name as me and looked almost exactly like me! Why did he lie about her name? What else did he lie about? About what he said the other night? More tears sprung to my eyes and I rubbed them away furiously.

"I'm such an idiot," I whispered, a dry smile appearing on my face. "I should have known…"

Diana, Daphne. "You never stop loving someone." The yearbook picture. The guilty expression on Mr. Firay's face. It was all too obvious! I was such an idiot! I grabbed my hair and pulled it as hard as I could, wincing in pain. Stupid!

Now tears were falling freely as another rumble of thunder echoed across the sky. I pulled my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them, letting my sobs finally escape my lips. Why me? What did I do? It hurt. It hurt so much it was hard to breathe.

"I love him," I sniffled, clenching my fists. "This isn't fair!"

I hated it. I hated it! I hated Mr. Firay! I hated Daphne! I hated everything. I hated myself especially for falling for his sly ways. Did he not mean anything he said? No. I shook my head. He had to mean at least some of the things, didn't he?

My phone vibrated again and this time I ignored it completely. If Mr. Firay was worried about me, he could worry. It went off again, and this time it was a phone call. Irritated, I picked up the phone to reject the call but my eyes widened in surprise when I realized that the called I.D read Lance.

But Lance's cell phone was still with Bryant. With a shaking hand I pressed the answer button and put the phone to my ear. "H-hello?"

"Daphne! Long time no talk!"

"Bryant?" I whispered, feeling my body tense. Paranoia took over once again and I looked around me cautiously.

"The only and only," Bryant responded. "I just wanted to check in on you."

"Why?"

"It's not safe for a girl to be alone in a park at night."

My breath caught and my eyes shot wide. I quickly jumped off the bench, spinning in circles frantically. Where was he? How did he know where he was? I held the phone tightly in my hand as I heard Bryant laugh from the other end.

"Are you a ballerina?"

"How do you know where I am?" I asked in a quiet voice.

"I can see you right now," Bryant told me. "Can you see me?"

Once again I took in my surroundings, slowly and vigilantly. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, and I didn't see any people. I swallowed nervously, slowly backing towards the entrance.

"I wouldn't go that way," Bryant warned in a light voice. "Dan is out tonight. I'm pretty sure he went in that direction."

I froze up, terror filling me. "What are you going to do?"

"Get you," Bryant responded without hesitation.

There was a click and the line went dead. Panic bubbled in my chest and I frantically went to my contacts and scrolled down to Sage's. The phone seemed to ring for minutes at a time until he picked up.

"Hello gorgeous, how may I help you this fine evening?" Sage answered in a deep, suave voice.

"Come to the park! Now!" I cried, looking over my shoulder every five seconds. "Please! Hurry!"

"What's wrong?" Sage responded, all playfulness in his voice gone.

"Bryant… he's… I think he's somewhere here," I responded, trying to stop my body from shaking.

"Damn it!" Sage swore angrily. "The park is all the way across town from my house!"

"Please come," I begged, feeling tears watering up in my eye. "I'm scared."

"Where's Matt?"

"I don't care!"

"Huh?"

"I said I don't care where he is," I repeated. "I don't want to see him. Come get me."

"Daphne I want you to start walking towards the downtown area," Sage told me.

"But—"

"I know you're not supposed to be down there, but it's safer than a dark park isn't it?"

"Okay, I'm going to start going there then," I responded, swallowing nervously. "Stay on the phone with me…"

"I'm going to call Matt and tell him to meet you—"

"No!" I cut him off, clenching my jaw. "I told you I don't want to see him!"

"Daphne, this is a serious situation," Sage responded, disapproval in his voice. "What is wrong with him coming to get you? Why don't you want to see him?"

"Because… Daphne…"

Sage took a sharp intake of air. "You found out?"

It felt like a freight train hit me. "You… knew?"

Sage knew and didn't tell me? Of course he knew! He was Daphne's cousin! He must have known I looked so much like her too. New tears sprung to my eyes.

"I thought I could trust you!"

"It wasn't my place to tell you!"

I laughed mockingly. "You're just like Mr. Firay. No wonder you two are best friends. Liars."

"Daphne, don't be over-dramatic."

"Over-dramatic?" I cried shrilly. "Alright, Sage! You try having your heart broken, being used, being lied to by the closest people to you in your life, and being targeted by someone in a gang!"

"I'm sorry," Sage started, but I cut him off again.

"Save it," I snapped. "Don't bother coming to pick me up either. I can handle myself."

"Daphne—"

I shut my phone and clenched it tightly in my hand. My legs suddenly felt like rubber and I slowly lowered myself to my knees, tears falling down my face again. I really was an idiot.

I slammed my fist down onto the cold ground. Why couldn't they just tell me straight out? It could have saved me so much hurt! My breath started coming in short and quick, and I had to calm myself down before I started hyperventilating.

It wasn't as bad as it seemed, I told myself. Sage was right. I was overreacting. But there was only so much one person could take in one night. I had every reason to overreact!

My phone went off again. "Oh my God!" I cried in irritation, snatching it up and opening it. "What?"

"That was quite the scene."

Bryant.

"Shut up."

"What happened? Did Matt break your heart?"

"Shut up," I repeated, scowling at the darkness surrounding you.

"Hey, I know your pain, remember?" Bryant responded sounding amused. "It's funny how you look so much like my Daphne…"

"I guess you won't be after me since it's now obvious Mr. Firay doesn't care about me now, huh?" I said with small laugh.

"Who said that had anything to do with it?"

"Huh?"

"Sure, that's the main reason," Bryant told me. "But you look so much like Daphne, and even your name is Daphne. Your hair, your eyes… even part of your personality is the same."

"I'm not her though!" I protested, suddenly angry. "I might look like her but I'm not her! Don't associate her with me!"

"Touching a nerve, am I?"

"Leave me alone!"

"You care about Matt so much, and yet he replaced you. You can't even compare," Bryant continued, sounding amused.

"I…"

"Don't you want to get back at him? If you got with me, I'm sure that would do the trick. I like you. Don't you feel betrayed? C'mon, get back at him with me. I promise I won't hurt you. I'll forget all that you've done. You can replace Daphne for me, and get back at Matt. Let's get back at him," Bryant coaxed.

"No…"

"No?"

I shook my head. "I still love Mr. Firay! I don't care if he loves the other Daphne, I'll just make him fall even more in love with me! Even if… even if he never loves me back, I'm not going to try to hurt him for revenge."

Bryant stayed silent. Then started in a dangerously low voice, "So you're choosing him too."

"There was never any other option," I responded coldly. "I don't know you. You don't know me! You're some guy who's been after Mr. Firay just because you abused your girlfriend and she left you! Your buddies shot my best friend for no reason! You're after me, even though I didn't do anything!"

"Fine, I'll take you by force."

My breathing hitched and my eyes shot wide. "What?"

"Could you imagine the look on Matt's face if he found you beaten half to death in an alleyway just as he'd found the other Daphne? And then when he's in shock, I can get him, that way he can't tell the truth about you or the other Daphne."

"I'm calling the police," I said. "I'm calling the cops. You're crazy. Completely crazy! He didn't do anything wrong! He was trying to protect the one he loved! He doesn't deserve what you're doing! I didn't do anything! I—"

"Call the cops?" Bryant laughed, interrupting me. "Can you? If you do that, Matt will be going to jail too."

"He…" I trailed off, realizing he was right. Mr. Firay would go to jail again if he were caught up in another gang problem.

"See? It all works perfectly. I'll get my revenge."

"Why?" I whispered.

"Because no one makes a fool out of me and gets away with it. Prepare yourself, I'm coming."

Suddenly the line went dead and I was left in silence. I slowly lowered the phone away from my face, suddenly feeling terrified. I had to get out of here. Pushing myself off the ground, I began to slowly make my way towards the exit, keeping my eyes peeled. My head pounded from all the crying, making it more difficult to try and hear any suspicious noises.

Another crack of thunder sounded, and then I felt the first rain drop. A groan escaped my lips as the few rain drops suddenly turned into a downpour. The rain was masking all noise I'd be able to make out. Not wanting to take any chances, I began to sprint.

Paranoia took over, driving me on. I imagined footsteps following me. A cracking noise to my right, voices to my left. I didn't know which were real, or which weren't; but I wasn't going to stop to figure it out. Once I left the park I'd head straight to the downtown area and figure something out form there… Maybe I could call Ariana.

As soon as I stepped out of the park exit, I was pulled to the side roughly. A startled scream escaped my lips, but a cold hand quickly suppressed that. With wide eyes, I looked up to see my captor. Bryant.

"How'd I know you were going to use this side to leave?" he asked with a grin.

I stared at him in disbelief. There was no way. Not now! Tears sprung to my eyes again and I tried to break free from his grasp. He roughly twisted my arm from my back, making me cry out into his hand.

"Don't struggle, Daphne," he ordered.

I didn't like the way he said my name. However to save myself pain, I heeded his words and stayed as still as I could.

"Dan is bringing the car around now, so just hold tight for a minute."

Car? They were seriously going to kidnap me? Dread filled my veins and I felt myself on the edge of hyperventilating. How was I going to get out of this? No one was around! Only Sage knew where I was and he was all the way across town, and I had told him not to come!

Bryant suddenly took a lock of my hair and ran his fingers through it. "Your hair even feels the same. I've heard that everyone has a twin in the world, but I didn't actually believe it. It's incredible…" He lowered his chin so it rested on my head and he let out a small sigh. "At least you're the right Daphne this time."

My eyes narrowed in confusion. Right Daphne? What did he mean by that? Was the other Daphne not right for him? But if that were so, I wouldn't be in this situation. I was tempted to shake my head, but I kept still. Bryant pulled his hand away from my mouth and I took a deep breath, breathing in some rain.

"Don't scream," he warned.

"I won't," I assured him, trying to make my voice sound calmer than I felt.

"Good girl."

"Are you seriously going to kidnap me?"

"I wouldn't call it kidnap, per say."

"It's kidnap!" I cried, clenching my fists. "You're kidnapping me!"

"Oh well," Bryant responded with a casual shrug. "We're in a lot of trouble already, so what's some more? There's Dan."

I looked over around Bryant to see a pair of headlights slowly making their way down the street.

"No," I said, trying to break free. "Let me go! No!"

"I'm not letting you go," Bryant said with a laugh. "It's useless to struggle."

"No! You can't do this! Let go!" Now I was screaming. "Help! Someone help me! Help—"

Suddenly pain laced against my cheek and I stared at Bryant with wide eyes. He slapped me! My cheek throbbed angrily as Bryant glared at me.

"I told you not to scream! Now let's go!"

He grabbed my hair and roughly started yanking me towards the car. I was sobbing again. I was surprised I still even had any tears left! This was crazy. Gang members were kidnapping me. Gang members that were going to harm me.

Suddenly Bryant stopped moving. He swore and rough shoved me away from him. I gasped in surprised and toppled forwards, slipping on the sidewalk and falling into the road. There was the squealing of breaks and I raised my hands to my face, letting out a surprised shriek.

No impact came, and I slowly looked up to see the car a few feet in front of me. The headlights blinded me, but I could hear the car door open and close. Someone's shadow entered my vision and I blinked in surprise when I realized who was standing above me.

"Daphne?"

I stared at my sister –a police officer- in shock. It was a miracle. She had a worried expression on her face, and held out a hand to me. I grasped it, and she pulled me to my feet. Still in shock, I didn't say anything as she surveyed me with her eyes.

"What are you doing here so late at night, Daphne? Did something happen?"

"This guy, Bryant, he—" I immediately cut myself off. I couldn't tell her I was almost kidnapped! She'd never leave me alone again, and I couldn't involve the gang. I couldn't take the chance of getting Mr. Firay involved since this was my fault. I cleared my throat. "My boyfriend, 'Brina, we got in an argument and he left me and drove away… and I was walking when I slipped and fell into the street…"

"You have a boyfriend? Since when?" she demanded, then shook her head. "Never mind. What about that man who was with you?"

"There's was no man with me," I lied confidently, raising an eyebrow in confusion. "Maybe my shadow…"

Sabrina didn't look convinced. "You can't lie to me."

"I'm not though."

We had a stare down until she relented. "Okay then. Let me take you home. I was heading in that direction anyways." She gestured to her car –which should not be judged. The inside looked like a police car while the exterior looked like a BMW. Relief washed through me as I safely sat inside the cop car. What a stroke of luck.

"What are you doing out here, Sabrina?" I asked, fiddling with my fingers.

"Hmm? Oh, Puck and I are supposed to go out tonight, but I was just going to drive home to get ready –he doesn't get off work until nine or so. I was allowed to get off early, thankfully."

"Oh, cool," I said, half-heartedly.

Sabrina glanced back at me out of the corner of her eye worriedly. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really."

"Then say no more. But we will talk about this Bryant guy when I come visit you, okay?" she said, as she pulled into the driveway.

"Fine," I told her, seeing her defiant expression.

"Tell Mom I say hi! Have a goodnight, Daph!"

"I'll try," I responded, giving her a hug before I got out of the police car.

She stayed in my driveway until I made it to my front porch. I watched as she drove away, and then I turned back to my door and turned the handle. It didn't budge.

"Unbelievable…"

I forgot I was supposed to stay at Mr. Firay's. And I didn't have my extra key! That was at the hospital along with everything else of mine! I slammed my head against my front door, laughing without humor. I should have expected this. What else could possibly go wrong? At least my porch shaded me from the rain.

Pulling my jacket around me tighter, I slid down the door into a sitting position, pulling my knees up to my chest. Guess I was camping out tonight. I rested my head on my hands, closing my eyes. Today just wasn't my day…

I didn't remember falling asleep, but someone shaking me violently suddenly awakened me. For a horrifying second I thought it was Bryant and I attempted to shove the person away.

"Just leave me alone!" I pleaded, pushing on soaking clothing. "I've had enough… I can't take anymore tonight!"

A strong pair of hands grasped my flailing ones and held them tightly. "Daphne!"

I froze. That wasn't Bryant. In a way, it was worse. I looked up to see Mr. Firay staring at me with eyes full of relief. He lowered himself down to my level, lowering his head. A small chuckle escaped his lips.

"You were sleeping," he murmured. "I thought…"

My mouth was suddenly dry. I licked my lips and swallowed a few times before speaking. "What are you doing here?"

Mr. Firay looked up at me again, his eyes narrowing slightly. "What am I doing here? Daphne, I've been looking for you for the past three hours! You could have at least answered your phone and let someone know where you were!"

My eyes widened in surprise and I took in his appearance now. He looked as if he'd gone swimming in a lake. His wet hair was matted to his forehead, and small droplets of water ran down his face. His clothing was soaked and clinging to him tightly. His hands that were holding onto mine were freezing.

Guilt rushed through me, but I shoved it away quickly. I turned my head away from Mr. Firay. "Sorry for wasting your time."

"Get up."

"What?"

"Get up," Mr. Firay repeated, yanking me to my feet. "Let's go."

"Go where? No! Let me go!" I responded, trying to pull my hands free. "I'm staying here!"

"No, you're not," Mr. Firay responded, narrowing his eyes. "Now let's go."

"No! I don't want to be around you!" I protested. "Now let me go!"

"I'm not leaving you out here so you can catch hypothermia, Daphne! If you don't want to come to my place, I'll drive you to Sage's! You're not staying out here all night."

"Why do you even care?"

"Why do I…?" Mr. Firay shook his head at me in disbelief. "I spent over two hours searching in the park for you since Sage called me in a panic saying Bryant was after you. Then I spent another hour searching the other places I thought you might be when I couldn't find you! Do you know how worried I was when I couldn't find you? Do you?"

My response was stuck in my throat. Mr. Firay never raised his voice at me. But now he was basically yelling at me. I clenched my jaw, glaring at him.

"I didn't ask you to look for me."

"I thought something happened to you!" Mr. Firay responded, his grasp on my hand tightening. "I thought Bryant had finally got you! I was terrified that he got you and it was my fault!"

"Which would suck because then when the other Daphne leaves you again, you won't have a replacement, huh? Maybe I should have let Bryant take me!"

All expression was wiped off Mr. Firay's face. My chest heaved a few times, but I was determined not to cry. Suddenly an angry expression came onto Mr. Firay's face and he pushed me against the front door, letting go of my hands and putting a hand on either side of me, pinning me there. I caught my breath and stared at him with wide-eyes. He was too close…

"Don't ever say that."

"Why?" I whispered. "Why not? At least Bryant told me I'd be a replacement, instead of lying to me!"

"Bryant will hurt you!" Mr. Firay responded sounding vexed.

"You hurt me more."

Mr. Firay's expression suddenly softened, and he dropped his arms, his eyes downcast. I stayed against the door, my eyes filling with tears again. I sniffled, bringing up a sleeve to wipe them away. Stupid tear ducts.

"I know," Mr. Firay finally whispered. "I know… I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to find out like that. I promise I was going to tell you, Daphne."

"When?"

"I don't know," Mr. Firay admitted. "But I swear I was. I just didn't want what happened right now to happen. I was trying to think of a way I could tell you without hurting you."

I laughed feebly. "Guess that isn't happening."

"I'm sorry," Mr. Firay apologized again.

"I don't want an apology," I responded. "I want an explanation."

"I'll explain to you as soon as we get to my house," Mr. Firay bargained. "You're not staying out here all night."

A slight breeze passed by, making me shiver and I nodded in agreement. "Okay…"

**A/N. **Don't get too mad at Mr. Firay. He has his reasons. Some weird reasons...

YAYS! I INCLUDED SOME MORE SABRINAAA! Not much, but, yays!

I think my favorite like of this chapter is, "You hurt me more." I'd be like PWNNNEEEDDD in that situation. XD

Replies:

Countrygirl: ...each _week_? Then we're on two completely different pages. We only run a mile for each year of middle school –so thrice. I LOVVE BLLUUEEBEELLL.

killerbunnies: Why thank you! I'm sorry it was a cliffy –that's why you get the six day update this week! ^^ You don't have to wait long. This is the update so...yaya! Yeah –I hated him too, but he has a good heart in the end. Bahaha, that's cute. :D

Eleni: Lol, :D He laughed –wow. XDDD That's so funny though. :D I got an account around that age, too. Actually...maybe 11...but I was thinking of getting an account at 10.

Rosebud143: Wahaha! Then I did good, then! ^^ Mr. Firay will answer that question in the next chapter. :D Lol, I know what? (wags eyebrows) There are two things –actually, three, but don't count on that third- that can mean (wags eyebrows), but only one of them is happening. XD Sorry, I'm a bit late. Piano and eating and writing the chapter and birthday parties are a bother. xD

So...**tomorrow** another chappie is coming! YAAAY! Hopefully in the afternoon –if not, at night like usual. ^^

Paalam!

~Lara


	41. Chapter 41:

**EDIT: This had been uploaded earlier, but I guess something was wrong with FF so I'm uploading it again. :3**

**A/N.** _Whoa. _Yesterday, 98 -_98- _people visited my stories. That's...that's amazing. I think this is the highest amount of visitors to my stories in one day. 0.0 _Whoa. _**I want to take the time to thank all of you again for being...just amazing -really, you all made my day. Mahal kita!** In the sisterly way, of course. I don't know if there are any boy readers here, haha. :3

Oh, and I'm trying line breaks to separate the A/N. from the chapter besides bolding the words 'A/N.', just because it looks better to me. :)

I'm sorry most of you disliked last chapter because Daphne was either a) acting daft or b) too much of a damsel in distress. Just...don't be too hard on me today, okay? Last night at the birthday party I went to...I came home kind of depressed, and seeing most of the complaints didn't help my mood at all. I'm not mad, but I'm going to try to sort out my feelings so I don't take out my anger at you. I don't mind the negative feedback, so you can review with those, but I just had a rough night, and I'm not taking it very well.

Um, 'sides that, **I am not updating Monday -project reasons**. So the updates for the 'six weeks updates' are Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday -and do not tell me that's not six. You guys had Saturday's and today's updates -that makes six days of updates.

By the way, please read my author's notes. It kind of peeves me when people ask when I'm updating, and I say so in an A/N. I get the feel the people just skip the Authors Note's and go to the chapter. So...I'm going to see if you actually DO read them. If you're reading this, put a };] sign anywhere in your review (lol, yeah, Curlscat -I'm bringing back the winking Grinch XD). But make it discreet! I don't want the people who do not read my note's to figure out the pattern. :) That's why this A/N. isn't bolded -some reviewers skip the not bolded or italicized text in my note's and read only the ones that are. So...do you truly read my author's notes? I just want to see if people are going to follow this. I won't be mad if you forget -though, I might mistake you as a person who does not read my notes, haha. :3

Sorry this A/N. isn't so smiley faced. I'm having...emotional problems. XD Haha, hopefully writing this chapter will cheer me up.

*finished writing* Yep. Suuureee dddiidd! ^^

Um, um, um...Oh yes! THIS IS ALREADY THE SIX WEEK UPDATE. **I AM UPDATING WITH THIS, THEN TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY, and FRIDAY**. Please **no more questions on when I update -please**. :)

**QotD: Who's your favorite animal character?** (Example: Winnie the Pooh, Tom from Tom and Jerry, Scooby-Doo, Bambi, Stitch from Lilo and Stich, etc. [by the way, I just named some of the stuffed animals in my room -that's not even a sixth of what I have XD]) **And why? If you don't have one, what's your favorite cartoon or TV show that features a stuffed animal?**

Last thing, I recommend listening to "Falling For You" by Colbie Calliat while reading _this _chapter. I think I said to read a chapter with this song before, but I think this chapter works...well, this chapter's supposed to be tension-y and the song's happy and all...maybe not. But the lyrics fit. ^^'

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 41: Revelation<br>**

The drive to Mr. Firay's apartment was silent. I stared out the window, watching the street lights pass by. Mr. Firay kept his eyes on the road, not sparing me once glance. The radio was off, making it more awkward. When we arrived, still no words were spoken as we made our way into his apartment.

Mr. Firay disappeared into his room for a few minutes and then returned with a pair of sweatpants and a long sleeve shirt. He handed them to me. "Go change or you'll get sick."

"I'm fine," I responded stiffly, crossing my arms over my chest. "You better start talking."

"Daphne, just change out of your clothing."

"I said I'm fine."

"You're changing whether you like it or not," Mr. Firay said, narrowing his eyes at me. "It'd save us both trouble and embarrassment if I didn't have to force you to change."

With a hot face and a scowl, I nodded, taking the clothing and going to the bathroom. I quickly stripped out of my damp clothing and pulled on Mr. Firay's warm clothes. I inhaled deeply, taking in the scent. He smelled so nice… I shook my head, a blush appearing on my face. What was I doing?

I checked my reflection in the mirror and nearly gasped in horror. I looked like a mess! My hair was curly and knotted, and I looked like I had been drowned by the not-so-Little Mermaid. As quickly as I could, I did my best to clean my face up with warm water and use a brush to comb my hair. When most of the knots were gone, I dried my hair and face, and then returned to the living room.

Mr. Firay was standing in the middle of it, wearing a black v-neck and grey pajama pants. For a moment I was taken in by his handsomeness, but I pulled my gaze away before he caught me looking. When he did notice me, he gestured me towards him. I stopped a few feet away from him, chewing my lip nervously.

"Are you going to lie to me again?" I asked quietly, looking into Mr. Firay's eyes.

"I promised I wouldn't lie to you anymore," he said.

"You broke that promise."

"I never lied to you, Daphne," he responded, frowning at me. "I just didn't tell you everything you needed to know."

"Don't you think telling me I look exactly like your old girlfriend is something I need to know?" I asked angrily.

"I was going to tell you," Mr. Firay told me, his blue eyes piercing into mine.

"When? Why didn't you just tell me that night when you told me about her?"

"Daphne, I don't think you understand how hard it was just to reveal my past to you," he replied, shaking his head slightly. "My past is not something I'm proud of, and at the time I was worried you'd be scared off after hearing it. When you weren't, I didn't want to take the chance of what happened tonight to happen then by telling you about the other Daphne."

"I would've reacted better if you just told me! What was I supposed to do after what had happened? This type of thing isn't very common, Mr. Firay. She looks exactly like me, except older! How can I not feel as though I'm the replacement?"

Mr. Firay sighed, running a hand through his still wet hair. "Daphne, you were the replacement."

I stared at Mr. Firay incredulously. Was he kidding? I actually was a replacement? He looked back at me with a serious face. A small laugh escaped my mouth. "I knew it," I said, feeling my throat constrict. "I'm the replacement. This is great!"

"Daphne, I said you _were_ the replacement."

I gave him a flat look. "What exactly is that supposed to mean?"

"When I first saw you at school, I wanted to get as close to you as possible because you reminded me so much of the other Daphne. Your hair color, your eyes; even some of your personality."

That was what Bryant had said. A small frown appeared on my face. Were the other Daphne and I that much alike? It was a little nerve-wracking. At first, I thought she could've been a future me, but wouldn't the tears in time mess up the present? So that thought was crossed off. How could two people be so much alike?

"So you used me as a replacement for her?" I demanded. "Didn't you care about the person who I actually was? Did you even think a little of my feelings?"

"I was too caught up in your looks," Mr. Firay responded honestly. "I was too distracted by your appearance to think about your feelings."

"That's horrible!"

Mr. Firay nodded his head in agreement. "It is."

"So then, everything you said to me… was it all a lie?"

"No, I meant every word I said to you. Not to the other Daphne, but to you."

"But I thought—"

Mr. Firay held up his hand. "Yes, at first you were a replacement. But as I started getting closer to you, I began to realize how different you were from her."

"But you just said we were a lot alike," I pointed out.

"Appearance wise, yes," Mr. Firay responded. "Personality wise and everything else, no. You're both stubborn, but that's the only thing you have in common. But everything else is different."

"I don't understand…"

"Should I list a few things?" Mr. Firay asked, a smirk appearing on his face. "You blush easily, you cry easily, you get embarrassed easily, you're too innocent for your own good, you're extremely clumsy, you're too honest… should I continue?"

I felt my face heat up and I looked at the floor. "I d-don't…"

Mr. Firay laughed. "See? You're blushing."

"I'm not," I responded stubbornly.

"I'll continue then. You're horrible with eye contact, you get jealous easily, you're easily riled up, and, perhaps the most important of all, you're understanding; you don't judge people by what they've done." When Mr. Firay said the last words, his expression softened considerably as he looked at me.

Once more, I had to look away. That look was to… intimate. "What about me being the replacement? I thought—"

"Daphne, you stopped being the replacement that day when I was driving you home and we were talking about our parents! That's when I realized you were different than the other Daphne. You cried for me, something the other Daphne probably would have never done. From that moment on, I viewed you as Daphne Grimm instead of Daphne Pierce. I haven't thought of you as a replacement since. You could never be a replacement. I'm ashamed to think at first I used you, and I'm incredibly sorry about that."

"Why couldn't you have just told me all of this earlier?"

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow. "You mean before you ran away from me in the hospital without letting me explain? There was hardly enough time…"

"I really thought you were just using me as a replacement…" I told him, lowering my eyes and clenching my fist. "I thought everything that happened between us was just a lie. I thought I had been used. It… hurt."

"Daphne, do you really think I'm that kind of man?"

I looked up back into Mr. Firay's grey eyes. Did I…? Immediately my eyes filled with tears and I shook my head. "No! I don't think that at all," I responded, my voice cracking. "I'm sorry, Mr. Firay. I'm sorry. I was so stupid. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions. I…"

"Daphne," Mr. Firay said with a sigh, grabbing my arm and dragging me closer to him. He put his arms around me and held in me a tight embrace. "See what I mean? You cry too easily."

"I'm sorry," I apologized, grasping his shirt in my hands.

"I'm sorry too, I must have made you cry," Mr. Firay responded. "I seem to do that a lot."

"It's not your fault."

"It is my fault."

"No it's not," I argued. "I'm the one who cried."

"But I'm the one who made you cry," Mr. Firay insisted.

"Technically you can't make me cry…"

"Daphne, you know what I mean," Mr. Firay responded and I imagined him rolling his eyes.

"But—"

"Daphne, just shut up and enjoy my comforting hug."

I smiled, rolling my eyes. I did as he said, and did enjoy his embrace. The tension between us immediately ceased and I let out a small sigh. Mr. Firay pulled away eventually though, and I resisted the urge to frown.

"Daphne, how exactly did you manage to get to your house? Did you walk?" Mr. Firay asked, furrowing his eyebrows. "That's a long way."

"Oh, no, my sister –you know how she's an undercover cop, right?- drove me home in her police car."

Mr. Firay's eyes widened in surprise. "What? Why?"

"No reason, I just happened to… fall into her way," I responded honestly. I did fall into her way. Well, Bryant pushed me, but technically it's the same thing.

Mr. Firay narrowed his eyes. "You're lying. Something happened."

I looked at him in disbelief. "How do you know?"

"I can just tell with you."

"Well stop, it's annoying," I complained making him laugh.

"Maybe if you stopped lying to me, I wouldn't have to. I tell you the truth, Daphne. Don't you think it's fair to return the favor?"

Sure. Play the guilt card. I cleared my throat nervously. "Well… You know how Bryant was at the park?"

"Yes."

"Well before I knew he was there, he called me using Wendell's cell phone, and we talked for a bit—"

"About what?"

"Stuff…"

"Like what?" Mr. Firay said, rolling his eyes. "Don't beat around the bush."

"He, um, said now that you have the other Daphne, that I should get with him… He thought I'd want to get back at you by doing that."

"He what?" Mr. Firay said, sounding angry. "He just wants to use you as a replacement!"

"I know that. But at least he had the decency to tell me right away." Immediately I regretted letting those words slip out of my mouth. Mr. Firay's eyes flashed with sorrow. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean—"

"Daphne, I don't mind," Mr. Firay cut me off. "I did use you as a replacement at first. I deserve every word."

"No you don't," I said, shaking my head. "I'd probably do the same if I was in your shoes. If the person I loved left me, I'd try to find a replacement too... Well maybe not, but you know…"

Mr. Firay smiled. One of his rare, genuine smile, not a smirk. I couldn't help but smile back.

"What did you say to Bryant?"

"Oh, I said…" As I remembered the words I said to him, a blush made it's way onto my face again. Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow.

"Well?"

"I just said I wouldn't go with him," I responded, editing out the whole part about how I would make Mr. Firay fall more in love with me.

"That's obvious," Mr. Firay said with a laugh. "Smart move."

"He said he'd take me by force. He hung up then, saying he was coming to get me. That's when I tried to leave, but Bryant was waiting by the entrance—"

"What?" Mr. Firay said, his eyes widening. "Daphne! Why didn't you tell me about this earlier?"

"Earlier we were arguing…"

"But this is more important! Are you okay? What happened?"

I lowered my gaze again to the floor and cleared my throat once more before continuing. "In the simplest words, he tried to kidnap me. He said Dan was bringing up the car, but the car that came down the street turned out to be a police car –Sabrina- so he shoved me away, and that's how I ended up being taken home by her."

"He tried to kidnap you?" Mr. Firay repeated, narrowing his eyes. "Are you telling the truth?"

"I wouldn't lie about this!"

"We have to tell the police," Mr. Firay said suddenly, looking around the living room. "Where's the phone? This is too serious now."

"What? No!" I cried, grabbing onto his arm. "If you're involved, won't you go back to jail?"

"Daphne, you're safety is more important than whether I go to jail or not!"

"No! If you go to jail I'll feel like it's my fault!"

"This is all my fault," Mr. Firay told me flatly. "Don't think for one second that any of this is your fault."

"It is my fault for running away in the middle of the night when I know there are gangsters after me!"

"It's my fault for getting you involved in the first place!"

"Don't call the police!"

"But Daphne—"

"If you go to jail then I won't be able to see you!" I cried, grasping onto his arm tighter. "I don't want that!"

Mr. Firay tensed up, looking at me with an unreadable expression. After a moment he put a hand to his head and sighed deeply. "Why?"

"Why?" I repeated in confusion. "Why what?"

"Why would you put me not going to jail over you being harmed?" Mr. Firay demanded.

"It's not fair that you have to go to jail for nothing, just like the first time! I don't want to see you going back. If you go back, we won't be able to see each other and the school would be losing everyone's favorite teacher," I told him, squeezing his arm. "I understand you want to help me, but I'm going to be extra cautious! So please don't call the cops!"

"You don't understand, Daphne," Mr. Firay responded. "You're in danger!"

"I don't care!" I responded, narrowing my eyes slightly.

"You don't care?"

"No!"

"Are you stupid, Daphne?" Mr. Firay asked, suddenly sounding angry. "I worry every day about your safety when you aren't around me. I'm always scared that something's going to happen to you when I'm not around to save you."

I blushed slightly, clearing my throat. "But I—"

"Hearing you say you don't care just makes me more troubled," Mr. Firay continued, cutting me off. "I don't want you putting yourself in danger to help me! I don't want anything to happen to you because of me, which you don't seem to understand."

"I do understand, though!"

"Then let me call the cops!"

"No!" I cried, glaring at Mr. Firay. "You're not calling the cops!"

"Daphne—"

"Please," I begged, holding onto his arm even tighter than before. "I don't want you going to jail! I promise I'll be careful, so please!"

Mr. Firay didn't say anything for a moment. Finally he sighed, gently pulling his arm free from his grasp. "Why, Daphne?"

"Because I'm in love with you!"

As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I gasped, my face growing ten times hotter. Mr. Firay's eyes widened slightly in surprise and either my eyes were betraying me, or he was blushing. I quickly adverted my gaze, my heart pounding a mile a minute. My whole body felt hot, and my hands were shaking.

I had just confessed… by accident. That wasn't what I was going to say! I didn't want to confess like that! I was too afraid to look at Mr. Firay. He probably felt really uncomfortable now. Tears were prickling at my eyes again, but this time from embarrassment. I had messed up the most important thing I wanted to say to Mr. Firay. I wanted it to be like one of the moments in a movie! Like how my sister had confessed to Puck! But no, I had to be my stupid self and ruin it. I quickly rubbed the back of my hand against my eyes.

"Daphne," Mr. Firay groaned in exasperation. "What are you doing?"

I knew it. He thought it was ridiculous confession too. "I'm sorry," I apologized, rubbing my eyes again. "I didn't mean to say that. It just slipped out."

"Not that," Mr. Firay told me. "Why are you crying again? Where do you even get all these tears from?"

"Huh?" What about my confession? Wasn't he going to say anything? I stared at him with a frown.

He brought a hand up to my face and wiped away a few stray tears. "That's better."

"Um… what about… what I said…?"

"What you said?"

"You know," I responded, my face heating up again. "What I just said."

"I don't remember…"

I stared at him in disbelief. He was kidding. He had to be kidding. He returned my look with a serious one, tilting his head to the side questioningly. He wasn't kidding. Unbelievable. I couldn't repeat myself after that! That was too embarrassing!

Mr. Firay suddenly snickered, but he quickly covered it up with his hand. I gave him a flat look. He grinned, shaking his head. "Just kidding, I heard you Daphne."

"I take it back. I actually hate you."

Mr. Firay laughed once, but soon after he sighed. "I didn't want you to say it yet, Daphne," he told me, shaking his head slightly.

I looked at him in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I knew how you felt about me, but I didn't really expect you to actually say it. I didn't want you to say it."

Wait, what? Why didn't he want me to say I loved him? Suddenly I felt like I was going to be sick. My chest clenched uncomfortably. What was that supposed to mean? He didn't want me to love him? But didn't he hint that he loved me too? Why…?

"Oh," I said in realization. "It's the other Daphne, isn't it?"

Mr. Firay furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "What is?"

"You don't want me saying that because you're with her, right?

"What are you talking about?"

"Aren't you back together with the other Daphne?" I asked him, now furrowing my eyebrows in confusion.

"What? No," Mr. Firay responded, staring at me like I was crazy. "Where would you even get that idea from?"

"You're not together? But you had dates—"

"Daphne, I already told you they weren't dates. I was just visiting her because she stopped in town for a while," Mr. Firay told me, frowning slightly.

"But you love her right? That's why you said you never stop loving someone," I prodded.

Mr. Firay smiled. "There's a difference between loving someone and being in love with someone."

I blinked in realization. So he loved the other Daphne, but wasn't in love with her. Another blush forced its way into my face. I had said I was in love with him… Had he caught that?

"She's already engaged."

"What?" I said in shock, looking up at Mr. Firay. "She's engaged?"

He nodded. "I don't know the guy, but the reason she's back in town is because she's personally handing out wedding invitations. She gave one to me, as well."

"Then why is she in the hospital?" I had assumed she had some kind of illness.

"Oh, she was mugged the other night and she cracked a few of her ribs," Mr. Firay responded. "At first I thought it was Bryant, but she says she didn't recognize her assailants…"

Bryant's words echoed in my head; "_the right Daphne._" I stared at Mr. Firay with my mouth open. He returned my look with a questioning one. I quickly debated in my head whether or not to tell him. If I did tell him, what would he do? Biting my lip, I lowered my gaze. I wouldn't tell him for now.

"Daphne, don't get me wrong," Mr. Firay said, putting a hand on my shoulder. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting to hear what you said. But the thing is, you're seventeen, Daphne. I'm twenty-two."

"But I don't care about that—" I started with my eyes wide.

"But I do," Mr. Firay told me with a frown. "You're too young for me right now."

"My birthday's next week though!" I protested suddenly becoming anxious. "Then I'll be a legal adult! Four years and a couple months in appearance isn't that much of age difference!" Boy, I sounded desperate.

"Hence why I said 'yet'," Mr. Firay responded with a smirk.

I blinked at him. Mr. Firay waited a moment, his smirk slowing growing. That's when I got what he said. He wanted to wait until I was eighteen?

"I won't respond to your confession right now," Mr. Firay told me, shaking his head. "I can't. It's not right. I can handle that student teacher thing, but our age difference is another thing completely. Right now it's illegal, because it says that I'm 22, and I'm trying to take the law seriously right now. So I'm going to forget about your confession for now, until you're older."

"So when I'm eighteen…?"

"Tell me again," Mr. Firay said, his eyes piercing into mine.

Another blush made its way onto my face and I looked away, clearing my throat. "But since you already know, doesn't that ruin it?"

"Know what?" Mr. Firay asked, innocently giving me a confused look.

"My feelings," I responded slowly, returning his confused look. What else could I be talking about?

"You're feelings about what?" Mr. Firay asked. "Sushi? I don't like it but I guess everyone has their own preferences."

"I'm not talking about—"

"I wonder if the game is on…"

I stared at Mr. Firay in bewilderment as he searched for the remote. That was it? Wasn't he going to say something else about my confession? Did he really mean he was going to forget about it until I was eighteen? That didn't help me much though. Another confession would feel pointless…

Mr. Firay turned on his television, putting it on the game, which indeed was one. He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye and smirked. "Go make me a cup of coffee."

"But it's almost two o'clock in the morning," I protested, glancing at the clock on the T.V stand.

"Who are you, my mom?"

"No," I responded in an irritated voice. "I'm just saying—"

"Coffee," he ordered. "Now."

"But it's your house!"

"Daphne."

"Fine," I muttered, pushing myself off the couch. "You know, you're so—"

"Amazing, I know, thank you," Mr. Firay finished for me with a wide grin.

I rolled my eyes, but a grin made its way onto my face as well. Everything was still normal. Even after everything we had been through, after how much stress tonight had caused me, it was normal. Mr. Firay hadn't picked on me once about how I over-reacted. He hadn't even mentioned it, even though I had caused him so much worry.

But the tough part was still ahead. A frown slowly appeared on my face.

How was I going to confess a second time to Mr. Firay?

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **Um, I don't really like how this played out. If you can tell, this wasn't planned out well because I had to keep remembering that MSeed is only _physically _22 in this story, not actually 22. And some of that doesn't make sense, I guess. I won't tell you what I know is wrong because I might spoil something, and I don't want that. I want your honest opinions on this chapter because I'm debating on rewriting this –not the whole thing, but if I rewrite Daphne's confession, it'll go like this, okay? :3

But are you all cleared up on that Daphne Grimm and Daphne Pierce thing now? **MSeed loves Daphne Pierce, but is **_**IN LOVE **_**with Daphne Grimm. **You know how you love your relatives like your grandparents or siblings or whatever? That's how MSeed loves D. Pierce. And I wrote that she's engaged so she has no chances with him anymore –_yay for DxM fans!_

Also, I have a poll up on my profile: Sequel? Which story? The choices are FTFT, Daphne's Distraction, and THFAR. Oh, and "No Sequels". Someone actually chose that one, lol. XD So, vote? So far, FTFT is winning.

So... (wags eyebrows) The confession was the (wags eyebrows). Wahaha! I'm evil aren't I? You were expecting the (wags eyebrows) weren't you? One at a time, people. You guys are spoiled enough with this six day update –I don't need to pamper you more with a (wags eyebrows).

I'm not replying to any anon. reviews this chapter –just because I need to focus on my newspaper again –I only have about six days left, but I'm almost done. I just need to do the pictures and write a few more things down. That's why there's no update tomorrow because I have to work on that, okay?

Oh, and this story offically has the same number of chapters as NMW by Ayns and Sky. XD THAT'S EPICAL! I miss those two...read their story if you haven't? It's really good. :)

Until Tuesday!

~Lara


	42. Chapter 42:

**A/N. **La de da do du...I should be mad at some of you right now. **I know who reads my author's notes now. **MWAHAHAH! Thanks for those who actually _read _my author's notes. **And those that don't...:( Shame on you.** Let's see...there were about 22 (some people reviewed multiple...but thank goodness, no one went over two reviews a chapter –I would've been peeved). Out of those 22...only nine. D: And some people who forgot were the people I _expected _to read my A/N's...tsk, tsk, tsk. **So, those who **_**did **_**remember the Grinch: };] ...**

**I LOVE YOU SOO MUCH! And you know who you are; here's your hug and a poster of Sage (Mr. Firay didn't try drawing this one ;D). **

Question: ...Was Daphne's birthday yesterday? Someone reviewed saying I should update "on Daphne's birthday" because they said you guys couldn't wait for Tuesday. If I'm understanding this correctly...did Rosebud143 say Daphne's birthday was yesterday? And is that true? If it is...D:! I can't believe I don't know Daphne's birthday! And I'm just doubting because Curslcat said it was like during spring or something –and she's usually right. :/ So...does anyone know?

Um...what else can be said? Oh whatever –and no review replies again. I'm too lazy. I promise –next chapter, I will. _But..._I do need to reply to this unknown anonymous reviewer:

To (): Thank you for being honest –I'm not sure who you are though. You sound like one of the people who have an account here on FF (no names because I might offend), but...I'm not sure. So...you hate the confession chapter, and a lot of my chapters, huh? Well, Sabrina's not supposed to be someone who makes you excited when you read about her alone, I guess. Like I said _there's not much Sabrina or Puck in this. _You know how guilty I feel when people ask for them, and I try to deliver a chapter with them? Hearing you say you don't like it makes me quite sad. Well, it's only been like a few chapters since they've bantered –and they were just in a fight. Do you think they could banter if Daphne was still really mad at him? Dragged on...I'm not sure what you mean. Well, there's a lot more chapters left of this story. Don't you think I'm going to bring that 'gay bit' back? I never forget any of this story –I love it so much. Burned out? What? No! Maybe you think it's losing its 'touch' because it's getting really dramatic in the story? I'm not sure. Haha, this isn't a flame –if it was, you'd be cursing _me _out. And saying bad stuff about me. But you're not, so I respect your words. ...Don't be discouraged? You basically said my newest chapters have been low quality. I think it's because of really _really _negative reviews that my writing is lacking something, but...I don't know. _Take a few days break? _If you haven't noticed, I've promised every single reviewer here that I'd give them a six-day-update as a thanks for helping me win Elli's BSGS2011. You can stop reading for a while if you'd like. Or become a silent reader –though, I don't like that; I want you to voice out your opinion. But I'm going to keep up with my updates. People deserve it and this is my big thank you to them. You weren't mean. You were being honest. Although, I'll admit I was kind of hurt, but you're honest. So, thanks so much for not keeping this to yourself. Any suggestions you'd like –please tell me. Thanks again! ^^

Enjoy chapter 42!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 42: Fever<strong>

The smell of something burning woke me up. I sat up quickly, under the impression my house was on fire. For a moment I looked around the room in bewilderment, until I remembered I was at Mr. Firay's apartment. A blush made its way onto my face when I realized I was in his bed. Pushing that though aside, I slid out from under the covers and headed towards the kitchen to investigate the source of the burning smell.

A few pillows and a blanket were lying askew on the couch. At least Mr. Firay had the decency to sleep on the couch. I felt sort of bad though; after all, I was the guest. I should have been the one sleeping on the couch. Or he we could have just slept in the same bed, we'd done it before—

I shook my head violently. No, we couldn't sleep in the same bed! He was still my teacher, no matter what my feelings were. We weren't even together. It was a good thing he had slept on the couch. What was I thinking? My hormones needed to control themselves.

"Mr. Firay," I started, stepping into the kitchen area. "Are you in—ah!"

My foot landed on something soft, making me pull it back in surprise, and lose my balance. My arms flew out as I desperately tried to stop myself from falling. I managed to catch myself just before I fell completely by grabbing the edge of the counter. My eyes dropped to the ground, where they landed on something that made my heart skip a beat.

Mr. Firay was lying face down on the ground, motionless.

"Mr. Firay?" I asked, crouching down to the ground.

When there was no response, I put my hand on his back and shook gently. When still no response came, my pulse picked up. I dropped to my knees, leaning over him and grabbing his shoulder, attempting to roll him over.

"Are you playing some kind of joke?" I asked harshly. "Because I'm not finding it very funny."

Still no answer. With surprising force, I managed to roll him over onto his back. His head rolled limply to the side, his eyes shut. Panic coursed through me now, my eyes widening in surprise. Either something was wrong, or he was a very good actor.

"Mr. Firay!" I called, shaking his shoulders slightly. "Mr. Firay? …Matt?"

Now when no answer came, I panicked. What was wrong with him? Leaning over him, I lowered my ear to his mouth, and relaxed slightly. He was still breathing at least. But his breaths were shallow and quick. I gently pressed a hand to his forehead and nearly pulled it back from shock. He was burning up!

My panic increased tenfold now. He had a fever! He had a fever? I didn't know Everafters could get fevers! Although, Puck did get the sniffles once... I didn't know how to care for a person with a fever! My mom and Sabrina always helped me, and as far as I could remember, they hadn't ever been sick in my life! I knew I had to get him off the kitchen floor though.

Lifting Mr. Firay off the ground was impossible. He was just too heavy! After a minute of biting my lip, I decided on the next best course of action since I couldn't pick him up: dragging him. Grabbing him by the arms, I began to pull him across the kitchen floor, through the living room, and into his bedroom. It was a hard feat, but I did it. I brought him all the way up to the bed. Now came the tough part; getting him on it.

If I could get his front half up, then I could easily bring up his bottom half. But the question was; how was I going to do that? I squatted down by Mr. Firay's head, pursing my lips. Maybe I could lift him up by his underarms… Well, it was worth a shot.

Moving into a kneeling position, I put my arms under his back and hooked them up through his armpits. I tested lifting him up by this method, and figured I could probably do it. I switched back into a squatting position, my head just hovering over his. With as much force as I could muster, I proceeded to pull his torso up. A small, strained, groan left my mouth. Mr. Firay seriously needed to lose weight!

I glanced down at him with a scowl. To my surprise, he was looking back at me with wide eyes. My breath caught and I dropped him in shock, pushing myself back, blushing hard. He landed on the ground with a loud thud and a groan. I blushed even deeper and winced.

"Sorry!" I apologized, bringing myself closer. "Are you okay?"

"What am I…?"

Mr. Firay looked at me with an extremely confused expression. His expression, mixed with his messy hair, and worn out look made him look like a lost puppy and I couldn't help but stare at him in awe. He looked so cute! Mr. Firay continued to look at me like that as I gawked, a smile spreading across my face. How I wish I could take a picture…

"Ow," Mr. Firay groaned, bringing a hand to his head. "Shit."

"What's wrong?"

"Headache," he told me, shaking his head in dismissal. "Why are we on the ground?"

"Oh, um… you have a fever."

"That doesn't explain why we're on the ground…"

My face became hot again and I adverted my gaze. "Um… well, you kind of passed out in the kitchen, so I tried to bring you to your bed… but you're heavy and I ended up dragging you, and I was just attempting to pull you onto it, but you caught me by surprise so I dropped you."

Mr. Firay smirked slightly, but it was ruined by a sudden coughing fit. When it was over, Mr. Firay put his hand on the side of his bed, attempting to push himself up. I reached out my hand for support, but he ended up putting a hand on my shoulder, making me sink under the pressure as he managed to get himself to his feet. Then he collapsed onto the bed with a sigh.

"Daphne."

"Yeah?" I asked, straightening myself out.

"Get out."

"Huh?"

"Go call Sage or something, just get out," Mr. Firay ordered, his voice muffled by his comforter.

"What? Why?" I asked in confusion, a little hurt by his words. What did I do?

Mr. Firay flipped over onto his back and laid a hand across his eyes. "Not like that, Daphne. I just don't want you to get sick too. I'll feel like it's my fault."

A frown slipped onto my face. Now that I was thinking about it, I realized it was probably my fault Mr. Firay had suddenly gotten sick over night. He had spent three hours in the cold rain searching for me. I looked guiltily at the floor. "I'm going to stay to take care of you."

Mr. Firay chuckled. "I don't need someone to take care of me, Daphne. I've lived on my own for the past few years. Go on a date with Sage or something."

"We aren't dating!"

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow in amusement as I flushed once more. That had come out more defensive than I had meant it to be. Mr. Firay chuckled again, but it turned into a cough.

"If you want to help, go get me some cold medicine. It's behind the mirror in the bathroom."

"What's the magic word?"

"Please."

I stared at him in amazement. He must be sick, I thought. He never said please. Nodding, I started towards the bathroom, still blown away. As I passed the kitchen again, the burning smell filled my nose and my eyes widened. Shoot! I had forgotten to figure out what the burning smell was!

Rushing into the kitchen, I immediately went to the oven. There was nothing on the burners, so I opened the oven door. Large clouds of smoke met my face as soon as the door opened. I coughed and removed my face quickly, trying to wave the smoke away. I located the oven dial and turned it off, still trying to clear the smoke around me. After a few moments I opened the oven again, peering in. Small, black, burnt mounds of… something were sitting on a silver tray. I closed the oven door again. I'd deal with those… things… later.

With a glass of water in one hand, and two small pills from the bathroom in the other, I returned to Mr. Firay's bedroom. Mr. Firay was now sitting on the edge of the bed, his hands holding his head. I cleared my throat quietly and he looked up at me.

"Here," I said, holding the glass of water out to him.

"My hands are shaking too hard to hold the glass," Mr. Firay responded, glancing at the glass. "How about you pass it to me by mouth?"

What? I stared at him in shock. I dropped my head in embarrassment, feeling my hot face grow hot again. If Mr. Firay kept this up, my face would be well done before the day was over. He started laughing and I felt him attempt to take the glass away from me. I let him do so, then handed him the pills, still not looking at him.

"Daphne, it's no fun if you're not looking at me when you blush."

"M-Mr. Firay, I think—"

"Matt," he corrected me.

For a moment I stayed quiet, looking at him wonderingly. It had been forever since he had corrected me. It felt nostalgic. A smile crept onto my mouth, and I shook my head. "Um, Matt, I think you should rest for a while…"

"I'm hungry," he complained. "I want to eat first."

"I'll make you something," I offered, excited by the idea of being able to cook something for him while he was in need.

His facial expression told me he wasn't sure if he wanted me to make him food. "I think I'm—"

"I can cook," I told him, a little resentfully. "Just because some of us aren't professional like you, doesn't mean we can't."

He grinned and laughed quietly. "Okay. There's some soup cans in the cabinet. You can handle that, right?"

"Yes," I snapped, narrowing my eyes at him.

"Well, get to it."

With a roll of my eyes, I exited the bedroom and headed for the kitchen again. A scowl appeared on my face as I huffed. Mr. Firay really needed to stop teasing me. A part of me told me that was one way of how he showed he cared, but I tossed that thought away. He still was a jerk. But, he was a jerk I loved. How cliché.

The sound of a phone ringing filled my ears as I reached for one of the cabinet doors. The sound was coming from the living room. Going back out there, I spotted Mr. Firay's cell phone on the table in front of the couch. I grabbed the phone and looked at it, wondering if I should bring it to him. My heart skipped a beat when I realized Sage was calling. After a second of hesitation, I hit the talk button and put the phone to my ear.

"Matt? You finally decided to pick up? Do you know how many times I called you and texted you during the past twelve hours? Did you find Daphne? Is she okay? Where's Bryant? What happened? Is Daphne with you? She's not answering her phone either!"

"Um, it's me…"

There was a silence on the other side of the line, and then I heard a deep sigh. "Daphne…"

"Sage…"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm okay," I told him, chewing my lip. "Are you?"

He laughed. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Oh, um, I don't know," I responded, smiling sheepishly.

"Daphne, I'm sorry about last night," Sage apologized, making my eyes widen in surprise.

"What?"

"I said I'm sorry—"

"No, I heard you," I said, cutting him off. "But what are you apologizing for? Don't! You didn't do anything wrong. It was as you said; I was just being over-dramatic. I should be the one apologizing for snapping at you! I'm also sorry I called you a liar and—"

"Daphne, breathe," Sage ordered with a laugh. "It's fine, I understand. You were just stressed out yesterday. I didn't take anything seriously."

"I'm still sorry…"

"Don't worry about it," Sage said easily. "I'm guessing things are okay now?" he asked, changing the subject.

I cleared my throat, glancing at the ground in embarrassment. "Oh, yeah…"

"Where's Matt?"

"In his bedroom. He has a fever."

Sage laughed. "Well that's what he gets for running around in the rain."

"Sage, I really don't know anything about helping sick people," I said honestly. "Do you think maybe… you could come over and help me out?"

Sage was quiet for a minute. "Well, I guess."

"You don't have to if you don't want to…"

"No, I don't mind," Sage assured me. "I just thought you'd like the alone time with Matt."

A blush made its way onto my face again. "I-I don't… it's n-not… I mean I d-don't…"

Sage laughed. "Daphne, you're too cute."

"Shut up," I snapped, glaring at the wall.

"I'll be over in about twenty minutes."

"Okay, I'm going to make Mr. Firay some soup."

"Behave," Sage responded in a singsong voice before I heard the click of the line hanging up.

I scowled, bringing the phone away from my ear to shut it, but something on the background caught my attention. My eyes widened in surprise when I realized it was a picture of me… kissing Mr. Firay? Another blush found its way to my face and I looked around in bewilderment. When had this happened? And why was it his phone background?

Suddenly it hit me. That time he had kissed me to blackmail me! But why was it his background? It was so embarrassing! I couldn't leave it as this! An idea popped into my head and I quickly turned Mr. Firay's phone camera on. I made the funniest face I could think of and took a picture. Removing the one of Mr. Firay and me, I replaced it when the comical self-portrait. How I just hope I wasn't around when Mr. Firay realized I had seen and changed his background.

I tossed the phone onto the couch, still flustered. Why would Mr. Firay have that as his background? For how long… Realization ran through me like electricity. Sage's words rang through my head. _"If you ever get the chance, look at his cell phone." _It made sense now. But the question still was why? Was it because…?

I shook my head. No, I couldn't afford to assume things. I didn't want to ask him about it either; it was too embarrassing. Maybe Sage knew… he seemed to know a lot of things, I thought wryly. Maybe Sage knew too much…

Shaking my head, I made my way back to the kitchen to make his soup. It was the kind in a can, so it only took about five minutes. After a minute of searching I found a bowl to put it in, and a spoon, then made my way back to Mr. Firay's room. He was lying back on the bed, under the covers.

"Mr. Firay?" I said, going over to him. "Mr. Firay? Are you sleeping?"

When he didn't answer, I frowned. How could he have fallen asleep so quickly? I squatted by the bed, peering at him for a moment. His sleeping expression caused my face to heat up a little. How could someone be as handsome as him? It had to be illegal to look like he did. Sighing, I reached over and shook him. He could sleep after he ate his soup.

"Wake up," I said loudly. "Mr. Firay."

Mr. Firay groaned, pushing my hand away. I laughed slightly at his action. "Get up. Your soup is done."

"Ms. Grimm?" he said sleepily, gazing at me through half open eyelids.

My eyebrows furrowed slightly. Why did he call me Ms. Grimm? I shrugged it off, frowning at him. "It's me, Mr. Firay. You're soup—"

The rest of what I was going to say was cut off when Mr. Firay suddenly brought his hand to the back of my head, forcing it down. My eyes widened as our heads grew closer.

Then our lips touched.

My eyes widened in shock as Mr. Firay's lips pressed against mine softly and gently. It took me a second to realize what was happening. Immediately I pulled away, blushing furiously. Mr. Firay gazed at me for another moment before closing his eyes again and dozing off without another word.

I straightened myself and staggered a few steps away from the bed, a hand slapping across my mouth. My thoughts raced frantically, matching the sharply increased beating of my heart. Mr. Firay had kissed me!

"Daphne? You in here?"

A startled gasp escaped my lips as I twisted to see Sage looking at me curiously. He had gotten here quickly!

"What's up? You look red."

"Um… I, um, I think I might be getting sick too," I made up quickly, thankful that Sage hadn't shown up a minute earlier. "In fact, I feel a little dizzy."

"Not good," Sage told me, coming over with a frown on his face. He placed a hand on my forehead and his frown deepened. "You're hot… I think it'd be best if you left this room…"

I couldn't agree more. I nodded my head, hoping to get away just in case Mr. Firay woke back up. "I'll go rest on the couch."

"Sounds good. I'll check on Matt."

I exited the room without another word, my heart still pounding. What was going on? What was Mr. Firay thinking? Wasn't he the one who told me not to confess until I was eighteen? Why had he suddenly kissed me? I thought the burning of my face was never going away.

The worst thing about the kiss, though, was how much I liked it.

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **Well, I felt that it was a bit too intense, so here's a fairly lax chapter. Oooooh, kiss? XD Do I get any nice comments about that? Jk –it was fun to write, so I don't need any happy reviews –you can go all hate reviews on me if you want. Though, if you do that, I don't know if you'll ever see another fluff moment in this story.

Sage: *sings* _Blackmail! _

Me: Shhh...

Um...I think instead of "Questions of the Week", I'll do "Questions that are answered every three updates." ^^ So, last chapter was the stuff animal one (go look back at ch. 41 if you wanna know what the question was) , and so is this. The answer (and new QAE3U) will be announced in tomorrow's update! Yays!

Dum do de da doooo. Paalam for now!

~Lara


	43. Chapter 43:

**A/N. **Let me start with the anon. replies today, okay? I just want them out of the way. :3 Be warned –it's LONG.

Countrygirl: Oh, I see. I get it –it's different because you're in highschool…I don't wanna go anymore! D: But thanks for your review! It was epical!

() (not the same '()' from last chapter :D): Hahaha. :D I know it has a lot of drama –I kinda like it. :D Ppppopcooorn. Lol, I don't think you really can. It's…yeah –I can't even imagine a twin Lara. Welp, the answers have shown up in the next chapter after that, so read on! ^^ :D Thanks!

Krystynn is super lazzzyyy D: Thanks! ^^ This counts as Tuesday. According to my time, I had updated right at midnight –I forgot we live in different time zones. Lol, I love writing about them. You'll see if Mr. Firay ever remembers.

Eleni: Thanks for your review! You're supportive, thanks! :D

Epiphany not logged in: Thanks! ^^ That's okay. I'm ready for this chapter's long review! :D

Mai: It is awesomeness. Thanks! :D Don't worry –soon, there should be some. :D

killer bunnies: Yep –good job! :D It was. XD You make a good point there! Thanks. :D …Are you sure she'll confess again? I can change that. :D No –it's not related to that at all, haha. Thanks! I'M ALMOST DONE. Thank goodness. Just the drawings and then –FREE!

To another '()': **Please do not complain about **_**when **_**I update because **honestly. I'm peeved at complaints right now. You have to understand I have a life like you do –friends, family, school, the who shebang- so, please understand I am not a computer freak and I am not on the computer 24/7. I wish, but then my eyeglass prescription would go up (I'm like a 9 :P I know –_I'm blind!_) and…yeah.

**Big applause to Llamacorn Rider for being the **_**500th**_**reviewer. …Wait, wasn't last week **_**just **_**the 400th review announced? :O Whoa… Anyways to Llamacorn Rider: …I don't remember the chameleon. Though, if you were originally "The Voice Not Heard" then I recognize you. XD And I'll def. take up the offer. Friend me on FB? I'm Lara Dee –just type in facebook. com/ LaraDFanFiction (without the spaces). ^^**

Okay, so obviously –like 10 people want a FTFT sequel. XD The winner is…_shocker! _A FTFT SEQUEL! :O Jk, but I hope you're excited now. :D Though, I must warn you –it won't be so action-y. More drama –and I know Curlscat has read enough of that in the SG fanficiton. :D So, there's your warning. But things I _can _promise you…

Much, _much _more DaphnexMSeed fluff

More banter

More Sabrina, Puck, and the rest of the Grimms

Few new characters

A little more magical (but not by much. I think this series is more of an AU fic if you think about it)

Much.

More.

_**Sage.**_

I know –you love me. Jk, jk. :D Thanks for your votes –without you guys, this story might not get a sequel. :D Again, you're all mucho gravy!

Um, um, um…winner of the _QAE3U: _(I speeded it up a little bit…:3)

"Oh I get…reference…reminds me of Kaichou Wa Maid-Sama when Misaki confessed her love for the first time, but Usui told her to tell him later...lied about older Daphne's name…loved the chapter…can't wait…  
>QOD: My favorite is Mushu from Mulan. I know he's a dragon, but dragon's are animals too. He makes me laugh so much, especially when he's with cricket." <strong>Congrats ArtemisRide! This chapter's dedicated to you and the 500th reviewer! ^^ By the way, OMG! YOU'VE READ KAICHOU WA MAID SAMA? I remember that scene in the manga –I friggin love Usui. He's so…awesome. XD<strong>

My answer: All fluffy animals. I can't choose. They're all so cute…_WAIT! _I like Po from Kung Fu Panda. Baby Po to be exact. He's so cute.

Dudes. I'm almost done with my Newspaper. Just the pictures…and printing…then _Bam. _I. Am. _Free. _I'm so excited.

Chapter 43! _QAE3U _will be announced at the bottom. ^^

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 43: Doubt<strong>

"Sage…"

Sage continued to laugh, ignoring my irritated tone. He had been laughing for the last minute straight, and while at first it was acceptable, now he was just over-doing it. A scowl slipped on my face as I fought the urge to punch the brunette-haired man.

Finally enough was enough and I swiftly brought a clenched fist to his shoulder as hard as I could. Sage winced, his laughter ceasing immediately. He looked at me with a frown, rubbing his shoulder.

"Ow. What was that for?"

"For laughing so much! It's not that funny!"

A smirk appeared on Sage's face, and it looked like he was holding in more laughter. I narrowed my eyes at him threateningly.

"First, if you're trying to look threateningly, it isn't working," he responded, his smirk growing wider. "You look cute. Like an angry kitten. Second, it _is_ funny. Daphne, your confession was so you."

"How is it so me?" I asked, fighting the blush that was trying to appear on my face. "It was an accident! Only idiots blurt out confessions like that…"

"Well…"

"If you're going to say I'm an idiot, I already know," I snapped at Sage. "Only I could ruin something as important as that."

Sage sighed. "I wasn't going to say that."

"But it's true!"

"Daphne, you didn't ruin it," Sage told me, reaching over and squeezing my leg hard. "Trust me."

I winced in pain, immediately trying to pull his hand off me. "Ow!"

Sage let go immediately, giving me a sheepish grin. "Ah, sorry. But like I said, you didn't ruin it."

"How is that not ruining it? I didn't mean to say it!"

"That's precisely why you didn't ruin it," Sage told me, a grin spreading across his face. "It's so you, Daphne."

"Is that supposed to be a diss?" I asked, frowning at him.

"Not at all! Daphne, it's cute, and probably not what Matt was expecting, which just makes it better. I'm sure he had a hard time trying to control himself after that. The only thing that I can think of that could have made it better would be you crying in embarrassment afterwards, which I could see you doing," Sage told me, a brief laugh leaving his lips.

A blush made its way onto my face, and I looked at the ground. Sage knew me too well. "Haha, yeah…"

"You did, didn't you?"

My gaze shifted to Sage and I narrowed my eyes. "No."

"You so did!" Sage cried, his eyes twinkling in amusement. "Your face tells it all! Oh, Daphne, you're too funny."

I glared at him. "How am I funny? What was I supposed to do? Laugh because I just ruined my chances of a movie confession? I—"

Sage put his hand over my mouth, silencing me. "Daphne, trust me, your confession was way better than any movie confession. There's nothing to be upset over. I'm sure Matt loves how you did it your own way…well sort of. You did it your own way by accident."

Pulling Sage's hand away, I shook my head. "No. That's why he wants me to confess again."

"No, he wants you to confess again so he doesn't feel like a pedophile when he accepts it," Sage assured me. "Why do you doubt yourself so much?"

My eyes widened in surprise as I stared at Sage. Doubt myself? Did I doubt myself? My conscious said I did. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. Why did I doubt myself? Suddenly, a list of reasons ran through my mind.

"I'm always a damsel in distress, I cry easily, I'm clumsy, I—"

"Daphne, you're listing all the good things about you," Sage cut me off before I could continue.

"How are those good?"

Sage smiled mischievously. "They just are."

"Because I'm—"

Without any warning, Sage slapped his hands to my cheeks. Hard. The sound seemed to echo as my cheeks burned from his hit. I stared at him in shock while he looked back with hard eyes.

"Daphne Grimm," he started in a serious voice. "Stop doubting yourself! It's not an attractive trait. I'm going to tell you what I told Matt; while you doubt yourself, Matt probably doubts himself as well. If you have doubts, go to him, and while you're there make sure you tell him what you like about him and have him tell you his doubts. You two will get nowhere if you both have attitudes like this!"

Mr. Firay had doubts too? What was that supposed to mean? And Sage and Mr. Firay talked about me? I tried to respond, but Sage's hands muffled my voice. Sage shook his head at me, putting my pressure on my cheeks.

"I'm not done. Since I said I've said this to Matt before, think back to anytime where Matt might have mentioned something about you. Or said something about your personality," he commanded, his green eyes piercing into mine.

For a moment I was entranced by their color, but I quickly snapped out of it when they narrowed. Mr. Firay had never said he liked something about me, had he? I wracked my memories. Any time…

My eyes widened in realization. The other night, when he had been describing the differences in my personality from the other Daphne! But no, those couldn't be the things he liked about me. They were all hassling traits no one liked…

"From your face, I do believe you've thought of something," Sage commented, pulling his hands away. "Tell me."

"Well the other night he was telling me how different I was from the other Daphne… and he mentioned how I cry easily, get embarrassed easily, are clumsy, and all those other things."

"Aha!"

"But those are— Don't hurt me!" I cried, covering my face as Sage raised his hands was again.

"Here you go with the doubt again."

"Sage, you just don't understand a girl's heart," I pointed out. "It's a stew of emotions."

"If you really doubt yourself, talk to Matt," Sage told me. "All those traits you think are so bad are actually really endearing, trust me."

Hearing Sage tell me that over and over again began to have its' affect on me. It made me believe his words. That those traits really were endearing, and part of what Mr. Firay liked about me. As stupid as they seemed. A small smile spread to my face, and it ended up spreading to Sage's face as well.

"See? It's better when you think of it this way."

"He never responded to my confession though," I told him. "He just told me to tell him again. He could reject me still."

Sage laughed, rolling his eyes. "Oh, please, Daphne. Do you really believe that?"

"Well, you never know…"

Suddenly Sage's eyes lit up. "Daphne, I have the greatest idea."

"Should I be afraid?"

"Nope. I think you'll like it."

"Let's hear it then," I told him, now intrigued.

"So Matt asked you to re-confess right?" Sage started, looking eager. "So he's probably expecting you to confess on your birthday."

"Which I am…"

"Well don't!"

I looked at Sage in surprise. Wasn't he always the one trying to get Mr. Firay and I together? Why the sudden change in attitude? "Why?"

"Make him confess to you," Sage said, a smirk appearing on his face.

I stared at him while his words sank in. Make Mr. Firay confess to me? I found it highly doubtful that even if Mr. Firay had feelings for me, he'd confess before I did a second time. He probably was expecting me to confess again on my birthday too…

Sage looked at me meaningfully while I debated. It would save me the trouble of trying to think of a way to confess a second time. It was pretty unfair that I'd have to confess twice. It was his turn to confess. And even if Mr. Firay didn't, I could still afterwards. I waited three months to tell him I loved him the first time, I could wait a week or two more to say it again. A smirk slowly spread onto my lips.

"I take it you like the idea?" Sage asked.

I nodded. "I think it's fair. After all, who asks a person to confess a second time? It's so embarrassing."

"If he doesn't confess in a few weeks, are you going to again?"

I blushed slightly, looking down at the floor. "Um, well… yes…"

Sage laughed, and I felt him messing with my hair. "I'm brilliant, aren't I?"

I grabbed Sage's hand from my head and pulled it away, but didn't let go. Sage looked at me curiously. I cleared my throat, suddenly feeling embarrassed.

"Um, I just wanted to say… thank you," I said quickly, squeezing his hand. "Sage, you are really good at voicing my doubts and making me feel better. You know me too well, actually. But it's a good thing, I guess. So thank you."

"Silly girl," Sage responded, pulling his hand free of my hand so he could be the one holding onto it. "There's no need to thank me. I make you feel better because I want to."

"And thank you for helping out with my situation with Mr. Firay," I added as an afterthought.

"I do that because I want to, too. Matt is my best when I found out he had an interest in you, I made it my duty to make sure things worked out," Sage responded. "It was just surprising that he brought a girl who looked exactly like my cousin back."

An image of Daphne Pierce flashed through my mind. And then what Bryant had said. A frown appeared on my face. Could it have been that Daphne hadn't been mugged, but attacked by Bryant? From Bryant's words, that's what I concluded, but Mr. Firay had said Daphne didn't recognize her assailants. It didn't make any sense.

I wanted to talk to her. No, I had to talk to the other Daphne. I wanted to know the truth. Butterflies erupted in my stomach, and I shifted uncomfortably. For some reason, I didn't like the thought of going to see Daphne…

"Daphne, are you doubting again?"

Breaking out of my reverie, I looked up at Sage in surprise. "No, why?"

"You have that look to your face. What are you thinking about?"

"Um, nothing…"

"Don't lie."

"Really, it's nothing," I assured him.

"Guess we'll have to do this the hard way," Sage said with a sigh, sitting up.

Before I knew what was happening, I was on my back with Sage above me. With wide eyes, I stared at his face, which was only a few inches from mine. He smirked.

"What are you—"

Before I could finish my sentence, I felt Sage's hands at my sides, tickling me. My eyes shot open even more as I inhaled sharply, exhaling with a laugh. I squirmed underneath him, trying to throw him off.

"Sage! Sage, haha, stop it! Stop!"

"Tell me what you were thinking about!" Sage responded, the grin on his face growing wider. "Matt might not force answers out of you, but I will. By means of tickling."

"Please," I begged, running out of breath quickly. "Stop it! Please!"

"Nope."

Suddenly I heard the sound of a door opening, and both Sage's gaze and mine snapped to Mr. Firay's room. Mr. Firay came staggering out, heading towards Sage and me.

"Mr. Firay!" I called, relief in my voice. "Help me! Sage is…" I trailed off as Mr. Firay ignored me, walking into the bathroom.

Sage glanced at me in confusion, and I returned his look with the same expression. A few moments later Mr. Firay reappeared, shuffling back to his room, not sparing us a glance. The door shut behind him.

"That was…"

"Weird," I finished for Sage, still staring at Mr. Firay's door.

"Oh well. Let's finish shall we?"

"No!" I protested, attempting to shove him again. "Sage! This is sexual harassment!"

"No it's not."

"It's close enough."

"Too bad."

Once again his hands were at my sides, tickling me into insanity. I couldn't tell him that Bryant might have attacked Daphne though! I didn't want Mr. Firay finding out. And now I knew Sage told Mr. Firay everything.

"Sage," I panted, swatting at his hands fruitlessly. "Please!"

"You don't have to say 'please'…"

Once again there was the sound of the door opening, but this time Sage didn't stop tickling me. I continued to try to push him off, feeling dizzy from not being able to breathe. I was really glad I wasn't Sage's sister. Those poor girls…

"What are you two doing?"

My eyes snapped to Mr. Firay, who was hovering above Sage and me, a frown etched into his face. Immediately Sage pulled off of me, giving Mr. Firay a sheepish look. "Daphne is lying again."

"I'm not!" I protested, glaring at Sage. "You're sexually harassing me!"

"Sage, don't touch—" Mr. Firay was interrupted by his own coughing fit. He swayed slightly and Sage quickly hopped off the couch to steady him.

"Careful," he said, holding on to Mr. Firay's shoulders.

"This is so annoying," Mr. Firay muttered, irritation dripping in his tone. He pushed Sage away from him and steadied himself. "I never get sick."

"Well maybe you shouldn't run around in the rain for three hours," Sage said with a laugh.

"It was important," Mr. Firay said, his gaze locking with mine.

My face immediately fired up. The image of Mr. Firay and I kissing entered my mind, and I frantically tried to force it away. I couldn't face him if I was thinking about that!

"Wait… Sage? What are you doing here?" Mr. Firay asked, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

Sage and I glanced at each other with blank expressions. Then we both burst out laughing.

"Matt, you should get sick more often," Sage said, slapping Mr. Firay on the back.

Mr. Firay staggered forwards, collapsing over the couch. He groaned, putting a hand to his forehead. "Tylenol… I need Tylenol," he said, his eyes piercing into mine again. "Daphne, can you…? Please."

He said please again! "Yeah!" I told him, hopping off the couch.

I glanced back down at Mr. Firay and fought the urge to laugh and aw. He hadn't even bothered to fix himself after falling onto the couch, so he was half off it and half on it. Sage was right. Mr. Firay should get sick more often. It was really entertaining.

When I returned back to the living room, Mr. Firay was asleep on Sage's shoulder. A grin spread across my face as I took in the scene before me. Sage looked at me and noticed I was watching him. He blushed slightly, turning his eyes away from me.

"Whatever you're thinking, don't say it," he warned.

"But you two are so cute," I responded with a small giggle. "Mr. Firay is so adorable when he's sick… it's a nice break from his usual attitude."

"Should we wake him up?" Sage asked, prodding the side of Mr. Firay's head.

I shook my head immediately. "No! This is too cute."

Sage rolled his eyes at me. "Daphne, I'm not going to sit here while he sleeps on my shoulder all night."

"Technically it's the afternoon."

"Daphne, I know you know what I mean."

I pursed my lips at Sage for a moment, and then sighed. "Fine, he has to take his Tylenol anyway."

Sage began to shake Mr. Firay awake violently. As I watched, I made a promise to myself never to fall asleep around Sage. If I did, I'd probably wake up with a broken neck. Just as I was about to tell Sage to be careful, Mr. Firay's eyes snapped open and he swung a fist towards Sage. Sage leaned backwards just in time to avoid being hit.

"Cranky," Sage teased, mussing with Mr. Firay's hair.

"I feel like shit."

"Here," I said, handing Mr. Firay the cup of water and then the Tylenol.

Mr. Firay took it without thanks and quickly proceeded to swallow the pills. He sighed, slumping forwards. "Ugh…"

I watched Mr. Firay nervously. What was wrong with him? A cold? The flu? He was only out for three hours… Guilt suddenly spread through me again. If I hadn't been such a child, Mr. Firay wouldn't be sick…

"Daphne," Mr. Firay said in a warning tone. "Stop thinking it's your fault I'm sick."

Sage looked at me in surprise, my expression masking his. I then turned to Mr. Firay, blinking at him. "H-how did you know I was thinking that?"

"You're easy to read."

"Or maybe you pay too much attention," Sage interjected. "I mean, yeah, Daphne is wicked easy to read, no offense, but that's…"

"Forget it," I snapped, feeling my face grow hot. "Let's not talk about me. Let's… watch the news."

I quickly grabbed the remote for the T.V and forced myself between Mr. Firay and Sage on the couch. Hitting the power button, I turned my full attention to the T.V as it came on. The news was on. Just as I was about to change it, Mr. Firay's hand suddenly appeared on mine, holding it still. I looked at him curiously, but his attention was focused on the television.

"Mr. Firay?"

"Shh, listen," he ordered, never taking his eyes off the T.V.

Furrowing my eyebrows in confusion, I turned back to the television. A news reporter was talking, but I couldn't quite make out what she was saying. Mr. Firay took the remote from me and turned up the volume, his mouth pressed in a straight line.

"Dan Daley, twenty four, has been convicted of assault and attempted murder to a minor. The incident occurred just last week, after a seventeen-year-old teenager was assaulted in a back alley after his work shift. The teenager survived two bullets to the chest and multiple hits to the body. Daley has been sentenced to jail—"

An image of Dan appeared on the television and I gasped, my eyes widening in surprise. It was the man who I had punched so long ago at the fair! He was the man who had shot Wendell? And they caught him? I turned to Mr. Firay, who was still watching the television, a smug smirk playing at his lips.

"This will show them," he commented, quickly glancing at me.

"Dan, huh," Sage commented, watching the T.V thoughtfully. "I never liked him. He was always so cocky… sort of like someone else I know." He looked at Mr. Firay meaningfully.

Mr. Firay glared at Sage and opened his mouth to reply, but instead of any words, he sneezed. Directly into my face.

"Ew!" I cried, shoving myself backwards and into Sage. "Mr. Firay, what the heck!"

Sage burst out laughing as I wiped my face with my sleeve, making a face in disgust. No matter how much I liked Mr. Firay, I didn't want his germs all over my face.

"Sorry, Daphne," Mr. Firay apologized, a smirk of amusement on his face.

I glared at him. How could I take him seriously when he was smirking like that? Mr. Firay's smirk grew and he laughed, which abruptly turned into a cough. My glare ceased and I looked at him in concern.

"Mr. Firay, do you think you should go to the doctor's?"

"No," he responded immediately.

"Matt doesn't like the doctor's," Sage informed me, grinning in amusement. "I doubt he's been to one since the last time I forced him there."

"You don't like the doctor's?" I asked, looking at Mr. Firay in surprise.

"I think it's because he's afraid that people will find out he has wings…or he's afraid of a _wittle needle_," Sage teased.

"Why don't you like the doctors, Mr. Firay?" I questioned.

"Never mind. Shut up and watch the television, you're making my headache worse," Mr. Firay snapped, turning away from me.

Instead of feeling insulted, I became curious. There had to be a reason why he didn't want me to tell why he hated the doctor's. However, for the time I'd let him be since he was sick. So I did as he suggested and turned back to the television. The case had changed, and there was no more information about Dan. I'd have to tell Wendell the next time I saw him…

Thirty minutes Sage was slumped against me, asleep. Mr. Firay glanced over at us with a frown. I returned his look with a sheepish grin, but immediately looked away, a blush spreading across my face. What was I doing? Couldn't I even look at Mr. Firay when he was near without blushing? It didn't help that he looked incredibly adorable with his messy hair… I shook my head. I needed to break my blushing habit.

Suddenly I felt something against my lap and I looked down to see Mr. Firay's head there. My face heated up ten-fold as he stared back up at me, unfazed.

"W-what are you doing?" I stammered.

"Resting," he responded simply.

"Why on my lap though?"

"Sage is using you as a pillow."

"B-but that's…"

"I'm using you as a pillow whether you like it or not," Mr. Firay told me. "I'm sick, so just this once…"

I turned my face away from him, growing more embarrassed. "N-no… It's fine. I don't mind."

"Good."

"And… I don't mind if you want to do it again in the future."

Mr. Firay stayed quiet, and I couldn't bring myself to look at him. Why had I said something so embarrassing? You could probably fry an egg on my face now!

Finally Mr. Firay chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind. Now I'm going to sleep for a while."

Well, since I was embarrassing myself already… I swallowed nervously, looking back down at Mr. Firay. "Wait. I have a, um, question first."

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"It's about the… the… um, the kiss," I said quietly.

"Kiss?" Mr. Firay echoed.

"Yeah. A while ago—"

"Oh, you mean in the classroom a few months ago?" Mr. Firay said, realization washing over his face.

I stared at Mr. Firay incredulously. Did he not remember kissing me the other night? Was he just teasing me again? No, he looked completely serious. I blinked in comprehension. He was fever dreaming, wasn't he? But wait, if he was dreaming, did that mean he was dreaming about me?

"That was just so you wouldn't refuse to help me after school," Mr. Firay continued, oblivious to my furiously blushing face. "In retrospect, it was pretty selfish of me to do that… I'm sorry."

"Don't be!" I said quickly. "It's alright. If you hadn't forced me to stay with you, we wouldn't be where we are today…"

Mr. Firay smiled at me. "True."

"Um, anyway, you should rest," I said, looking away as embarrassment got the best of me yet again.

"Okay," Mr. Firay responded with another chuckle.

After a few minutes of silence, I looked down at my lap to find Mr. Firay's eyes closed. I gently prodded his cheek to see if he was still awake. When no response came, I figured he was out. Glancing at Sage to make sure he was still asleep, I brought my face down to Mr. Firay's.

"Sleep well," I whispered, pressing my lips to his forehead.

Immediately I shot back up, surprised at my own boldness. I focused my attention on the television so I wouldn't think about the man resting on my lap. It was a hard feat to do. But soon I was overcome by tiredness, so I closed my eyes, leaning my head back against the sofa. Within minutes, I too was asleep.

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **Ugh. I am so tired. I'm happy that I love you all, though –if I didn't, I'd be another day late. By the way, last update was for Tuesday –where I am, I had posted right at midnight, making it Tuesday, but I forgot some of you live in different time zones… So, yeah.

**QAE3U!**

**Who's your favorite actor and why? **And you have to have another reason besides, "They're really smexy." etcetera, etcetera. I can take that as a reason (believe me, I think that, too) –but you'll have to give me another reason. And the next reason can't be the same thing. I know some of you –you guys will try funny with me. XD That means _you. _XDDD

Update. Is. Tomorrow. Capice? Thankss! ^^

~Lara


	44. Chapter 44:

**A/N.** No anon. replies this late at night, I'm afraid. If you're wondering why I'm still up (according to my time, it's around 10:40 PM, but this is probably posted a lot later…maybe 11 in my time.), it's because I've stayed up to finish my newspaper.

I have succeded.

YAAAY! Gosh –I'm happy that's over. Though, I might get points off for rushing…eh, that's okay. My teacher's averaging that with my AR test and my real test (AR -100%; real test-94%) so I'll probably still have an A or so. ^^

Um…chapter…right…Zzzzz…it's 44, right? Bleh.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 44: Meet and Greet<strong>

"Daphne_, como estas_?"

I glanced at my Spanish teacher for a moment, trying to comprehend what she asked. After a second, I realized she was asking how I was. "Ah, _bien_…"

"_Estabas enferma_?"

"_Si_," I responded, stopping by her desk so she could interrogate me.

Ariana stared me down from the back of the classroom, a frown on her face. I returned her look with a questioning one.

"_Lo siento_," Ms. Hernandez started again. "_Bienvenida de vuelta_."

"_Gracias_."

"_Tienes la tarea de viernes_?"

A small sigh escaped my lips. Of course the one homework I didn't do was the one homework she wanted to see. "_No, lo siento_."

"_Tráemela mañana_," she told me with a smile.

"_Claro_," I responded, returning her smile. Before she could say any more, I hurried towards my seat.

"Where have you been?" Ariana started in an accusing tone.

"Sick," I responded honestly. "Didn't you hear my conversation with your mom?"

Ariana snorted. "As if I listen in this class. This is an easy A, _amiga_."

I chuckled, shaking my head. "Why are you in this class, anyways?"

"Don't change the subject. Something's up."

I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Mr. Firay has been out for three days now, and two of those days you are out as well?" she started, narrowing her eyes. "Don't tell me you two were skipping together."

"What? No!" I responded, my eyes widening slightly. "I really was sick. Mr. Firay—"

"Is sick too?"

I nodded. "When I left his house on Sunday he still had a fever. I haven't talked to him since because after I went home I ended up getting sick too. He spread his disease…" I trailed off when I noticed Ariana was grinning at me like an idiot. "What?"

"When you left his house on Sunday?" she repeated. "What is that supposed to mean?"

With a quick glance around the room to see if anyone was listening, I beckoned Ariana close to me. She leaned in, her eyes wide with excitement. I almost laughed at her.

"My mom asked Mr. Firay to take care of me for the weekend while she was gone," I informed Ariana. "It ended up being the other way around though, haha."

"Really? You stayed the whole weekend at his place?"

"Yep."

"Did anything happen with… you know?"

My heart skipped a beat and I stared at Ariana in shock. "W-what do you mean?"

"Between you and Mr. Firay," she said slowly, furrowing her eyebrows. "What do you think I meant?"

"Um, nothing," I responded, looking away. There was no way Ariana could know about the gangs. What was I getting so paranoid about?

"Oh, Daphne, you can't lie to me. Tell me!"

"_Dime_."

Ariana jumped in shock and my eyes shot up to see Ms. Hernandez hovering behind her. Ariana grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, mama."

"_Lo siento_, mama," Ms. Hernandez corrected again.

"_Nyeh_," Ariana muttered under her breath as her mom went back to the front of the room.

The rest of class was spent learning new vocabulary, which was easy. Five minutes before the bell rang, Ms. Hernandez let us chat together quietly. Ariana turned back to me, pursing her lips.

"Are you going to visit Wendell today?"

I nodded. "Yeah, since I haven't been able to since I've been sick."

"Who's bringing you?"

"Umm, Sage, why?"

Ariana looked at me pleadingly. "The guy I've talked to on the phone before? I want to go visit Wendell too, so can you ask him if I could have a ride too?"

"I don't think Sage will care," I told her. "But we're leaving right after school—"

"That's fine!" Ariana said quickly. "I'm ready to go now. Are you sure he won't care?"

I shook my head, grinning. "No, Sage's pretty cool."

"Awesome."

When the bell finally rang, I stood up and hitched my bag over my shoulder, heading out of the classroom with Ariana in tow. Together we made our way to the back exit where Sage was supposed to be waiting. Ariana glanced at me nervously as we left the building.

"Are you sure he won't care?"

"Positive," I told her, rolling my eyes. "Now we just need to find him…"

As if on cue, Sage's black car came rolling up to us, music blasting from the inside. Ariana shot a look at me and I rolled my eyes, opening the passenger door. I leaned in and, to my surprise, came face-to-face with Mr. Firay. Immediately I pulled away, feeling my face heat up.

"M-Mr. Firay," I stammered, looking at him in surprise.

"Hi Mr. Firay!" Ariana chirped from behind me.

"Hi, Ariana, Daphne," Mr. Firay responded, giving Ariana one of his polite smiles.

"Ready to go?" Sage asked, leaning over Mr. Firay to look at me.

Mr. Firay turned to glare at Sage for a moment before turning his gaze onto me. I stared back for a moment before switching my focus onto Sage. I gestured Ariana to step forwards and Sage's eyes flicked to her for a minute before he looked back at me.

"Can we also give Ariana a ride?" I asked him, giving him my best puppy dog look.

"No," Sage responded without hesitation.

"What? Why?" I asked in surprise. "But we're going to the same place—"

Sage laughed. "I'm kidding. Look at you two! Your expressions are priceless!"

Immediately I felt my face heat up and I glared at Sage for a second before glancing at Ariana, who didn't seem fazed. In fact, she was smiling a little. When she noticed I was watching her, she smirked.

"Your expression was pretty funny…"

"Ariana! Are you—?"

"Get in or I'm leaving without you," Sage interrupted me in a singsong voice.

Sighing, I climbed into the backseat with Ariana. Mr. Firay looked at me through the rearview mirror, a grumpy expression on his face. I tilted my head questioningly.

"Matt is unhappy because I'm taking him to the doctors," Sage informed me, catching me staring.

"I don't need to go," Mr. Firay protested. "It's just a cold."

"You sound awful," Ariana interjected, leaning over so she could look at him. "So you really have been sick these past few days? I guess that means you're the one that got Daphne sick."

"Ariana," I hissed, sending her a warning glare.

Mr. Firay turned around, giving Ariana a curious look. "Daphne was sick?"

"No I was—"

"For two days," Ariana said, cutting my protest off. "She hasn't been in school."

Mr. Firay frowned, turning his attention back to me. "Daphne, why didn't you tell me I got you sick?"

"Ooh, what did you two do when I left?" Sage said teasingly, making me blush.

"We didn't do anything!"

"Secret make-out session?" Ariana guessed, a small grin spreading onto her face.

"Ariana!"

Sage laughed, nodding his head. "I bet that's exactly it."

"No we didn't! Mr. Firay! Aren't you going to say something?" I asked, turning to him for help.

"Matt is giving me the silent treatment," Sage told me when Mr. Firay didn't respond. "He's so immature."

Mr. Firay suddenly jammed his elbow into Sage's side, making Sage swerve to the left. A gasp of surprise left my mouth and I quickly leaned over and pulled Mr. Firay's arm away from Sage.

"You're going to cause an accident!" I accused. Ariana started laughing and I turned to frown at her. "What?"

"You guys," she told me, shaking her head. "A comedic trio."

"We could probably make a lot of money," Sage agreed. "I'm Sage by the way."

"I'm Ariana," Ariana responded, giving Sage a grin. "We've talked before."

Mr. Firay suddenly began to cough violently, causing my heart to skip a beat in surprise. Sage looked over at him with a worried expression, which mimicked my own. Ariana even gave him a concerned look. When the fit passed, Mr. Firay acted like nothing had happened.

"Um, are you okay?" I asked.

"I'm fine," Mr. Firay snapped. "I don't need to go to the doctor's!"

"Oh yes you do," Sage responded, wagging his finger. "Your violent attack just now proves it."

"I'm fine!"

"Mr. Firay, I think you should see one too," I interjected. "What if it's something more serious than the flu…?"

"Yeah, like pneumonia," Ariana added.

I bit my lip, looking at the ground. Why was I so immature? If I hadn't over-reacted then Mr. Firay wouldn't be sick…

"Daphne."

"You can't possibly know I was feeling guilty again!" I cried in exasperation. "Mr. Firay, are you mind reader, or something? Do you have this unnatural ability to know what people are feeling? It's crazy! Half the time I'm not even showing the slightest signs of lying or feeling guilty, and yet you…" I trailed off when I noticed Ariana was staring at me with wide eyes.

I silently cursed myself. Ariana was with us! I couldn't act like I normally did otherwise she would get suspicious! But then again, she knew I loved Mr. Firay… but she still didn't know about how close our relationship actually was. And she couldn't know either. As much as I loved her, and though she was my best friend, this wasn't something I could tell anyone… especially if it turned into something more.

Mr. Firay chuckled, breaking the awkward silence that had settled in. "I was actually just going to ask if I could have Wendell's number before I forgot…"

"Huh? Why?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "Wendell…"

Wait... Wendell didn't even have his phone; it was with Bryant. Did Mr. Firay want the number so he could talk to Bryant? Threaten Bryant? Without thinking I looked away from Mr. Firay, a frown coming onto my face. If I gave Mr. Firay Wendell's number he might do something stupid.

"I don't have it."

"Don't lie."

"You can't have it," I told him.

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"

"You just can't!"

"Daphne, I need it."

"No," I responded, biting my lip.

Mr. Firay sighed. "Daphne, I'm not going to do anything that will put myself in danger, if that's what you're worried about."

My eyes shot open and I gaped at Mr. Firay. He returned my gaze, looking slightly bewildered. After a minute his eyes darted to Ariana, and then widened in realization. I also stole a glance at Ariana, who was narrowing her eyes at me suspiciously. Mr. Firay cleared his throat, gaining Ariana's attention.

"It's not like I'm going to harass him with text messages to do his homework," Mr. Firay continued, pausing only to cough into his arm once. "I don't want to be beaten up…"

"Yeah," I agreed with a laugh. "That's what you meant by dangerous, huh…"

"It is."

"Mr. Firay, Daphne hasn't mentioned it yet, but Wendell actually lost the phone when he was mugged," Ariana pitched in now, all looks of suspicion gone.

"I agree with Daphne and Ariana. You don't need it, Matt," Sage added, glancing at him quickly.

I sent Sage a grateful look. If there was someone that could really go against Mr. Firay, it was Sage. Mr. Firay scowled at Sage, before turning his scowl to me. Immediately I looked away from him before he could guilt me into giving him Wendell's number. I felt bad, but I felt more afraid that he'd do something stupid.

The rest of the ride was silent. Ariana stared out the window; Sage was focused on the road; Mr. Firay was sulking; and I was fiddling with my fingers, thinking about what I was going to do when I got to the hospital. Wendell was my first priority, but my second was a little more daunting.

I was going to visit Daphne.

Sage pulled up to the hospital's front doors, and stopped to let us out. Ariana and I unbuckled and stepped out of the car together.

"Thank you for the ride, Sage," Ariana called, sticking her head in the door. "Bye, Mr. Firay! I hope you feel better!"

"Anytime," Sage responded.

"Thanks," Mr. Firay said grumpily.

I chuckled, rolling my eyes. "See you later Sage, Mr. Firay."

"Bye, Daphne," Sage said, grinning at me. "Have fun."

I shut the door and made my way to the other side of the car where Ariana was waiting. As we turned to go inside, Sage honked the car horn. I turned around and saw Mr. Firay gesturing for me to go to him. With a quick glance at Ariana, I started back to the car, bending down slightly to see Mr. Firay better.

"What?"

"If I'm still sick and don't get to see you tomorrow," he started slowly, a smirk now slipping onto his face, "happy birthday."

Mr. Firay immediately rolled up the window as I stood still, staring at him speechlessly. Birthday? Tomorrow was my birthday? A blush made its way to my face, and I glared as I saw Mr. Firay start to laugh inside the car. I twisted on my heel and marched back to Ariana. She raised an eyebrow.

"What'd he say?"

I ignored her. "Is tomorrow my birthday?"

Ariana raised an eyebrow. "You don't even know when your own birthday is?"

"No, I do," I assured her, "but I just didn't realize it was so soon…"

"Probably because you've been sick," she told me, heading towards the entrance again. "It's okay, though, because we aren't celebrating until Friday with Wendell. What are you doing tomorrow for it?"

"I honestly don't know. My mom hasn't said she wants to do anything with me yet," I responded, welcoming the warmth of the hospital.

"Sounds boring."

"Last year I watched re-runs of Teen Mom with Sabrina… I think even if this year wanted to try, it wouldn't be as boring," I told her with a laugh. "My mom's going to be home, anyway. That's a little entertainment. Hey, maybe Sabrina and Puck will come! Though, I'm not sure if my dad's done with work, so he might miss it."

"Hey, if Sabrina and Puck are there, that'll be entertaining enough, _amiga._"

We made our way up to Wendell's room, but before we entered, an elderly looking nurse stopped us. "Today visiting hours end at four," she said.

"What? Why?" Ariana asked, looking surprised.

"Hospital inspection," she responded. "It's an annual thing."

Ariana looked at me and shrugged. "Well at least we have an hour…"

I bit my lip. "Ariana… visit Wendell for me."

She raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Tell him I said hi and that I hope he feels better," I told her, fiddling with my fingers again. "Since there's only an hour, I have to go visit someone else first."

"Who?"

"My mom's friend," I made up, hoping she'd believe it.

"Oh, okay," Ariana responded, smiling at me. "Try to make it back! I'm sure he wants to see you."

"I'll try," I said before going back down the hallway we'd just came up.

After a few minutes of searching I finally made it to the hallway with Daphne Pierce's room. As I grew closer to the door, I became more nervous. It took me a full three minutes to even bring my hand up to knock. When I finally did, as soon as my fist made contact with the door once, I yanked it back, my heartbeat spiking.

"Come in," I heard a muffled voice say.

Taking a deep breath, I put my hand on the doorknob and pushed it open. Daphne's eyes widened slightly when she saw me. I had to admit even I was still surprised looking at her. We really did look a lot alike. I entered the room and shut the door behind me, rubbing my sweaty palms off on my face. Why was I so nervous around this woman?

"It's Daphne, right?" Daphne asked, now smiling at me.

After a second I smiled back. "Yeah."

Daphne laughed. "Wow. It's like I'm looking at a younger replica of myself. This is crazy."

"I feel the same way," I agreed. "Except you're older."

She smiled. "Are you saying I look old?"

"No! Not at all! I meant… you know."

"I do know."

Daphne gestured for me to take a seat in the chair near her bedside, and after a split second of hesitation, I did so. To my surprise, she actually seemed like a nice person. Even though I felt like I should dislike her, I couldn't help liking her.

"So what are you here for?" Daphne asked. "Matt isn't here…"

I shook my head quickly, feeling my face heat up. "No, I'm not here looking for him."

Daphne chuckled. "Aw, you're blushing."

"I'm not," I denied, keeping my head down.

"You don't have to hide anything from me. I know you two have an intimate relationship."

"What?"

"The other night, you guys had a lover spat, right?" Daphne asked, raising an eyebrow. "After Matt chased after you he came back pretty out of it. He told me about you."

"What did he say?"

"Nothing bad," she assured me. "I'm not going to tell you exactly what he said though in case he doesn't want me to."

I frowned slightly. Now I was really curious. I sighed. "Okay… But Mr. Firay and I don't have an intimate relation—"

"You still call him Mr. Firay?" Daphne cut me off, her eyes widening. "That's so cute! Oh boy, I would love to see his reaction if you called him by his first name. Or you do it when it's just you two by yourselves? I could understand that."

I stared at Daphne incredulously. This girl really liked to talk. "It's kind of a habit, so I call him Mr. Firay all the time… even though I know I should stop."

Daphne laughed. "No, don't! Keep calling him Mr. Firay. I bet he secretly enjoys it. You could use calling him Matt to your advantage. I know how he is. I bet you could convince him to do anything. He talks so highly about you."

I couldn't help but to smile at that. "I didn't realize you guys talked about me so much."

"Are you kidding? He never shuts up about you."

"Really?"

"It gets kind of annoying actually."

"Sorry," I apologized with a laugh.

"Don't be," Daphne responded. "I just know things that I shouldn't since I don't really know you."

"Like what?"

"Like your favorite color is purple, your favorite food is steak, you love animals, you blush easily, you're clumsy and honest, you are gullible, and you suck at eye contact. Oh, and your birthday is tomorrow."

I stared at her for a second, surprised. "Did Mr. Firay tell you all that?"

"That's not even a sixth of it."

My face grew hot again, and I turned my attention back to the floor. Mr. Firay knew my favorite color and food? He talked about my birthday? But the last time he had seen Daphne we hadn't had the confession talk yet… Did that mean something? Or was I just over thinking?

"Anyway, enough of me blabbing away," Daphne started again, breaking me from my thoughts. "It just is so boring in this hospital room."

"It's fine," I told her. "When do you get out?"

"Saturday," she told me, making a face. "My fiancée will be here by then. I need someone to drive since I broke my ankle."

"Oh, right, because you were mugged…"

"Um, right…"

Daphne looked away from me, a solemn expression slipping onto her face. My palms were beginning to get sweaty again as I tried to think of a way to ask what I came here in the first place to ask. When Daphne's eyes finally met mine again, I clenched my fist.

"You were attacked by Bryant, weren't you?"

Daphne's eyes widened considerably. "W-what? No! Bryant is…"

"Bryant told me," I confessed. "He told me he had got the wrong Daphne, or something like that. I didn't tell Mr. Firay. You can tell me the truth, and I promise I won't tell him."

Daphne stayed silent for a moment, her eyes downcast once again. I kept my silence as well, waiting for her to speak. Was I right? Or was I wrong? Or maybe she was just going to deny it? Maybe Bryant was lying?

Daphne sighed, looking at me once more. "You can't tell Matt…"

"I won't," I promised, my eyes widening slightly. "So was I right… Did Bryant…?"

Daphne nodded. "I wasn't mugged. Bryant attacked me."

* * *

><p><strong>AN.** Sorry this is filler-ish. I'm seriously in need of sleep. After this is posted, I'm off to bed, my friends!

Again, QAE3U's is…who's your favorite _actor_, not actress and why? Someone reviewed with Emma Watson. She's awesome, but a girl. XD I'm looking for good movies/TV shows with good actors –and not just because their quote, unquote "hot".

Translation People Who Don't Speak Spanish/Aren't Great Detectives:

_como estas : _How are you?

_Estabas enferma : _Were you sick?

_Lo siento : _I'm sorry.

_Bienvenida de vuelta :_Welcome back.

_Tienes la tarea de viernes :_Do you have the homework from Friday?

_Tráemela mañana :_Bring me it tomorrow.

_Claro : _Of course.

_Dime_ : Tell me.

Zzzzz.

~Lara


	45. Chapter 45:

**A/N. **QAE3U: Okay, I know this is supposed to be answered every three, but I'm in a good mood. I'm picking a winner earlier. Or _two_, may I say…

"HAHA, I actually have an answer to the QotD (I'm still gonna call it that. It's easier.) My favorite actor is... *drumroll* DAVIIID TENANNTT! He's plays one of my favorite characters of all time, and he does it so well... The show is called Doctor Who, BTW. My favorite voice actor would probably have to be... Todd Haberkorn, who does Death the Kid and Keroro. (BTW, have you watched Sgt Frog or Soul Eater like I suggested? Cuz he plays in both of them. And Ouran.)"

"So. Good chapter. Seriously, every chapter gets better. Oh! And favorite actor! This is really hard... Hmmm,... It's either Josh Hutcherson... Or Josh Hutcherson... I'm gonna go with Josh Hutcherson. The reason why: First of all, I've liked him (not LIKE like, just you know, the 'I like waffles' kind of like) since I first saw him in a movie. Then, as he grew up, he became cuter, and a better actor. And in the interviews and stuff he's so down to earth and funny! Not fake and disgusting like a lot of Daphnewood guys. But I will never, ever call him hot. I hate calling guys hot. It seems so... I honestly don't know how to put it into words. Ugh. Dangit. OH! Another reason: I love when he cries in movies. He's so gosh darn CUTE! hehehe... Oh, I need help. :$"

**So…**CONGRATS EPIPHANY ON TOAST AND ANANNYMOUSE! YAAY! ^^

Oh, and thank you, twilightfunatic, for recommending this story to booksonclouds. She says she's hooked. Thank you so much.

By the way...this month, I've gotten over 1,030 visitors. That's...oh my gosh. I might start crying. Last month it was around 800 visitors. Just...thank you so much for all your support. I'm serious. I want to thank you all so much for helping me and this story. Really...you guys are the reason I love writing in general. :D

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 45: Better Than Me<strong>

"Before I tell you anything, I have a question," Daphne said, frowning at me. "How do you know about Bryant?"

I sighed. "It's kind of a long story…"

"I've got time."

After a moment of hesitation, I resigned and decided to tell her the whole story. I left out the whole Bryant wanting me part though. Mr. Firay and Sage worried about me enough for a hundred people. The last thing I needed was for more people to fret over me.

"And that's how I learned about Mr. Firay's past as a gang member," I finished lamely, raising my eyes to look at Daphne for the first time since I started explaining.

She was staring at me like I was crazy. I didn't blame her. In retrospect, I realized everything that I did with any occurrence with the gang members was incredibly stupid. Especially the whole "punch everyone" part of it.

"How could Matt have dragged you into this? This is seriously dangerous, Daphne," Daphne warned me, finally speaking.

"I already know that," I responded. "And it's more my fault I became involved… Mr. Firay just complicates things."

"He should have kept you out of it though."

I frowned at her. "I'm the one who—"

Daphne shook her head. "It's still his problem, Daphne."

"It's my problem now too," I stated stubbornly. For some reason, I felt like I had to defend Mr. Firay. "Mr. Firay didn't have anything to do with that…"

Daphne raised her eyebrow skeptically. "Is that so?"

"It is." Okay, so it wasn't the whole truth, but it wasn't like Mr. Firay forced me to punch anyone. Daphne looked like she wanted to say more, but I cut her off before she could. "Now it's your turn to talk. What happened with Bryant?"

"Before I answer, I have one more question. How did you know it was Bryant who attacked me instead of the mugging I claimed it to be?"

"Umm…" I hesitated, blushing faintly from the embarrassment of my actions from the memory. "The night when I saw you for the first time I went to the park after I… left the hospital and he found me there. While we were talking he said, 'at least you're the right Daphne this time', so I figured he might have done something to you. And then Mr. Firay told me that you were mugged."

Daphne frowned at me. "Bryant said something similar to me when he figured out I wasn't who he wanted me to be. He said, 'Well, isn't it my other Daphne?'. At the time I didn't know you existed, so I was pretty confused."

"That was my reaction when Bryant said 'the other Daphne'. And that's how I figured out that you weren't mugged. "

Daphne sighed, tapping her finger against the metal rail on her bed. "You can't tell Matt."

"I know," I responded. "But why not?"

"I'm done."

The sudden coldness in her voice made me tense up. Her friendly demeanor had suddenly turned bitter, and her eyes hard. I had to look away, intimidated by her gaze. My initial nervousness returned with new vigor.

"I won't tell," I finally said quietly.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," she responded, her tone lighter again. "I just can't take this gangster business anymore. After Matt went to jail I promised myself that I would never get involved again— that's why I moved away. And now I have a son—"

"You have a son?" I asked in shock. Already? That meant she must have had a relationship at least two months after Mr. Firay went to jail…

Daphne shook her head, smiling at my expression. "He's going to be my step-son."

"When did you start dating your fiancée?" I asked before I could stop myself.

Daphne raised an eyebrow, but shrugged. "Probably a month after Matt went to jail."

"Oh," I responded. Only a month? She got over Mr. Firay in a month?

"Daphne, you're showing your innocence."

"What?"

"Your innocence," Daphne repeated. "The look on your face is telling me you don't like the idea of me dating after only a month of breaking up with Matt. A month isn't a short amount of time to get over someone. Don't get me wrong, I did love Matt, but I also wanted to forget about him and the gang because I was scared."

"Which I can understand," I told her, nodding my head.

"But…?"

I looked at her in surprise. "How did you know there was a but?"

Daphne laughed. "Matt was right. You're so easy to read."

"I'm not," I denied, feeling my face heat up.

"Daphne, what's your but?"

"It's nothing bad. I'm just wondering why you broke up with Mr. Firay right before he was put in jail. Don't you think that's a little cruel?"

"I do," Daphne responded honestly. "I still feel bad about it too, actually. But it's what I had to do. Being done with the gangster thing meant being done with Matt too. I wasn't going to make him sit in jail for eight months and come out only to be broken up with. That's why I did it before he went in. He had time to move on, and so did I."

"And you and Mr. Firay are still friends," I started, feeling a little confused, "even though you are done with this gangster thing?"

"I wasn't expecting to have to deal with gangsters again since he's a teacher now," Daphne told me. "I'm leaving again so I don't have to. I still love Matt, just not the way you do."

Immediately my face grew hot and I looked away. My first response was to deny it, but I couldn't. It was the truth. I didn't want to deny it. But it was still embarrassing to hear it said aloud.

"I want to be friends with him, and luckily for me, he wants to be friends too," Daphne continued, smiling slightly at my reaction. "Matt is a great guy. He's never held what I did to him against me; he understands I did what I had to do. He deserves better than me. He deserves you."

I looked at Daphne, taken aback. "What?"

"Why do you look so shocked? Daphne, not everyone can get involved with a gang because of someone and still love that person. You don't even seem to care about the danger involved. You don't even seem fazed that he was in jail!"

"I'm not," I told her, now growing confused. "Why would I be?"

Daphne stared at me for a minute in disbelief. "You don't even care the slightest bit?"

"Mr. Firay had his reasons, and I don't blame him for going to save you, even though he ended up in jail."

Daphne suddenly looked guilty, and she turned her gaze to the floor. "Daphne, you're a much better person than me. I don't know if he's ever told you this but…when we were in high school, I first asked him out because one of my friends, Rochelle, told me he had money. I was beginning to come broke –my parents spent money on unessential things like clothes and stuff. But then, I started to actually love him. Somehow, he found out that I had used him for money at the beginning, but he's forgiven me. I still feel really guilty. You look like me, but we're so different. It's funny, you're younger than me but so much more mature."

"Daphne," I started, feeling awkward using her name, "I love Mr. Firay. If it were any other person in the world, I probably would care that they were in jail, unless they had a really good reason, but since it's Mr. Firay, nothing matters. Don't say I'm a better person, I'm just… blinded by love," I ended lamely. I didn't know how else to make my point.

Daphne smiled at me. "I'm glad Matt met someone like you. I can't tell you how happy I am to see how much you care for him. Thank you for that."

"Don't thank me," I muttered, blushing again.

"Now all he needs to do is man up and tell you he loves you!"

I cocked my head at her, raising an eyebrow. "You know he's my teacher right?"

Daphne responded to my look with a confused one. "What about it?"

"It's not… right."

"Daphne, don't tell me you're worried about that," Daphne said, rolling her eyes. "You don't care about gangsters or prison, but you care about the fact that he's your teacher? Are you stupid?"

"N-no! I don't care that he's my teacher!" I corrected her, shaking my head. "But so far everyone that knows how I feel about him has been really supportive. No one has been judgmental about it. But I keep waiting for that one person to say something— Tell me he's too old for me, tell me it won't work out…"

"Is that what you want to hear?"

"No!"

"Then don't worry about it! Anyone who has seen Matt talk about you, or you talk about Matt, or I bet even just the way you two interact outside of class, knows that you two are right for each other."

"I'm more worried about the fact that Mr. Firay is an adult, and I'm an immature teenager… I don't care what other people think, but I don't want Mr. Firay thinking that."

Daphne rolled her eyes. "Please. You're the least immature person I've ever met. I'm positive Matt doesn't care that you're still technically a teenager."

A small smile spread onto my face. It was nice to hear what I wanted to hear from someone else. "Thank you…"

"You and Matt only have a four year and maybe three month age difference. My parents have a seven-year age difference. My fiancée is five years older than me. Don't worry about anything that has to deal with your age. As they say, age is but a number."

"Right," I agreed, feeling oddly refreshed.

"I hope everything works out for you two."

"Thank you."

"And I hope you don't get hurt."

I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Bryant," she told me. "Daphne, he's really dangerous."

"I know," I responded, adverting my gaze. "I know he is. I know the whole gang situation is."

"Promise me you'll be careful," Daphne ordered. "I don't want to see you taken away from Matt."

A small shudder ran through me. I didn't like the way that sounded. Taken away? Did she mean killed? Or something like what happened to her that would make me not want to be around Mr. Firay anymore? No, there was nothing that could make me not love him…

"I'll be careful," I said softly. "I won't be taken away."

"Good."

"I have a question, though."

"Yes?"

I tried to word my sentence carefully. "When you dated Mr. Firay…was there anything "unusual" about him?" I had no idea if Mr. Firay had told her he was an Everafter. If he hadn't, I wouldn't want to risk her finding out. I had used up all of my forgetful dust during the summer.

She blinked. "No, not really. Is there something unusual about him?"

Oh, so Mr. Firay hadn't told her. "He doesn't like sushi."

A grin broke out on her face. "I remember we went to a Japanese restaurant and he dragged me away when he saw and smelled the sushi."

"Why doesn't he like sushi?"

"I guess it's because-"

Suddenly my pocket started vibrating. Confused, I pulled out my phone to see I had a text message from Ariana. Since when did the hospital have service? Well, I wasn't going to curse it. I opened the text and smiled slightly.

"Is that a text from Matt?" Daphne asked teasingly.

I shook my head. "My friend, Ariana. You see, my friend Wendell is in the hospital too… he was also attacked by Bryant."

Daphne's eyes looked they were about to pop out of their sockets. "Matt involved another teenager?"

"No, no, no," I said quickly. "Wendell was completely my fault!"

Daphne gasped in realization. "On the news the other day… Dan, one of the members, was put in jail for shooting a teenager down town… That was your friend wasn't it?"

I bit my lip, but nodded my head. I couldn't lie to her. "That's the one."

"Oh my goodness," Daphne gasped. "I can't believe it. Shot? Daphne—"

"I know," I interjected before she could finish. "Trust me. Mr. Firay has repeatedly told me how dangerous this is. I've got it."

To my surprise, Daphne chuckled. "I'm surprised Matt doesn't have a collar around your neck. I wouldn't let you out of my sight if I were him. You seem like a danger magnet."

I blushed slightly. "I don't…"

"I take it your friend wants you to go visit him before visiting hours are over?" Daphne asked, smirking at me.

I nodded. "Yep. He wants to set plans for a get-together on Friday in stone."

"Well, I won't hold you back."

I stood up, straightening out my shirt. Daphne smiled at me and I couldn't help but smile in return. There was something about her that made you want to smile. It was strange.

"I'll, um, come visit you again," I said, fiddling with my fingers.

"Bring Matt with you too," she insisted. "I want to talk to both of you together."

I scratched the back of my head, forcing out a laugh. To be honest, as much as I liked Daphne, I didn't want to be in the same room as her and Matt at the same time. I knew they didn't have their old feelings for each other anymore, but it would still be weird to me. "I'll try."

"See you, Daphne."

"Talk to you later," I responded, giving a small wave before exiting into the hallway.

I practically jogged to Wendell's room, gaining strange looks from some of the hospital workers. When I made it, I burst into the room, out of breath. Wendell and Ariana both gave me questioning looks.

"Who were you visiting?" Wendell asked. "Ariana told me it was your mom's friend."

"This woman named Diana," I told him, using Daphne's old fake name.

"Uh-huh," Wendell said, but his eyes held a hint of suspicion.

Sometimes Wendell was too smart for his own good. I gave him a meaningful look that hopefully would prevent him from saying anything in front of Ariana. The last thing I needed was to explain the whole Daphne thing to both of them. Especially since Ariana had no idea about the gang thing.

"So here's what I want to do," Wendell started, sweeping his hair out of his face. "There's a fall festival going on Friday night, and I thought it'd be fun if a bunch of us went there to celebrate instead of just going to someone's house."

"There's a fall festival?" I repeated in surprise. "Where?"

"Fair grounds," Ariana told me. "They're going to have a bunch of rides set up and food booths. Later there will be fireworks too."

I grimaced. "I'm not a fan of fireworks…"

Wendell rolled his eyes. "C'mon Daphne, the last time you watched fireworks was like years ago. I'm sure it'll be a different experience now."

"Fine, let's go to the festival," I responded. "And you better hope the fireworks are a good experience, or you might just end up in the hospital again."

Wendell laughed. "Trying to sound tough, eh?"

"What time would we be meeting up?" I asked, ignoring Wendell's jibe.

"The fireworks start at ten, so what if we met up around six?" Ariana suggested. "That way we can hang out, do rides, and eat before they start."

"Who is 'we'?"

"You, me, Ariana, Tina, Colin, Josh, and Willow," Wendell told me. "The normal us. Though, I'm not sure if Red and Tom are coming –Tom's going down to Virginia for the weekend, and I think Red's going back to Ferryport by then."

I smiled. "Sounds good… it's been awhile since we've all hung out together. Though, I'm going to miss Red. I feel like I haven't hung out with her in awhile."

"It'll be good to have a night with no worries," Wendell commented.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm pretty excited now," Ariana added, a grin on her face. "I can't wait until Friday now."

"Neither can I. I want to get out of the damn hospital."

I laughed, rolling my eyes at Wendell. "If you get too over-excited, you might hurt yourself."

"I'll try to be careful," Wendell responded mockingly. "I won't randomly follow someone into the woods or anything…"

I sent Wendell a death look, which he returned with a smug smirk. Ariana missed the exchange between us completely, which made me feel relieved. She was busy tapping away at her phone; probably talking to Josh.

"Since when does the hospital have service?" I asked.

"I don't know but I'm not complaining," Ariana responded, still gazing at her phone.

"It doesn't matter to me," Wendell said, suddenly sounding irritated. "My phone was stolen…"

Ariana glanced up at Wendell. "I thought you said you lost it?"

I shot Wendell a warning look, and he quickly cleared his throat. "Stolen, lost, it's the same thing. It would have still been at the scene if it wasn't stolen, right?"

Ariana nodded. "True. Whoever has it hasn't responded to any of my text messages, though."

Wait, what? Ariana was sending text messages to Wendell's phone? My eyes widened and I looked at Wendell, who was giving me a questioning look. What if Bryant randomly decided to tell Ariana who he was? Or what was going on? I chewed my lip, suddenly anxious. I hadn't got any messages from Bryant lately, so hopefully he would never message Ariana…

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door and a young nurse appeared, looking bored. "Visiting times are over," she told us. "And Wendell, you have to go to physical therapy now."

Wendell groaned, slumping back onto his bed. "I hate PT."

I laughed, patting his leg. "Have fun, Wendell. I'll see you Friday."

"_Adios,_Wendell!" Ariana chirped, standing up. "I'll come back tomorrow! _La manana!_"

"Bye guys," Wendell said grumpily. "Enjoy your PT free day."

I rolled my eyes at him before gesturing for Ariana to follow me out of the room. Together we made our way to the hospital exit. The air was cool and crisp when we stepped outside, a refreshing scent after being in the hospital. Hospitals didn't smell so good.

"Do you have a ride home?" Ariana asked, rubbing her hands together. "It's cold…"

"Yeah, my mom's picking me up. Are you going home with me?"

Ariana shook her head. "Josh will be here soon. We're going to go to the mall for a little bit."

I wagged my eyebrows. "How romantic."

Ariana jabbed her elbow into my side. "Shut up. Oh, look! Perfect timing. Here he is."

A small white Honda Civic pulled up next to us and the window rolled down. Josh's head appeared, grinning at Ariana and me. "Hey guys."

"Hi," I responded as Ariana made a move for the passenger seat.

"You need a ride somewhere?"

I shook my head. "Nope, my mom's coming. Thanks for the offer."

"Want us to wait with you?"

"I'm good. She'll be here soon."

Josh nodded, glancing over at Ariana, who was now in the car. "Then I guess we'll see you later?"

"_Hasta luego, _Daphne!" Ariana called, leaning over Josh to see me. "See you in school tomorrow!"

"_Adios_," Josh said.

"See you," I responded, waving as Josh closed his window.

As the car pulled away, I caught glimpse of my mom's car entering the hospital parking lot. A small smile spread across my face. Perfect timing. She drove all the way up to the entrance and I quickly opened the passenger seat, to be greeted with a surprise.

"How's my girl?" Dad said, smiling.

"Dad!" I hugged him tightly, and saw my brother in the backseat, tapping away on his Nintendo. "Base! How are you, little brother?"

"Fine," he said absentmindedly as I opened the door and scooted in next to him, giving him a hug also.

"Glad to know you love me," I mocked offendedly. "So, how was New Jersey?"

"Fine."

"Basil met a girl," Dad said, smirking through the mirror.

My brother's face flushed. "No I didn't."

"You're almost as bad of a liar as Daphne."

"Hey!" I defended myself, cracking a grin.

"Hi honey," my mom greeted, smiling at me through the mirror. "How's Wendell?"

"Same old, same old," I responded with a shrug. "He's doing a lot better. He'll be out Friday."

"That's good to hear!" my mom responded enthusiastically. "It's too bad he can't be out tomorrow so he could come with us."

"Come with us?" I repeated.

My mom looked at me in surprise. "Oh, did I forget to tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"Your mother made reservations at your favorite restaurant. Osaka," Dad said.

My eyes widened. "Really?"

"It is your birthday," my mom responded with another smile. "But it's actually for four people. Your father and Basil are only here for a short time again, so they're not going, but they'll spend today with us! Also, Puck and Sabrina have work again, so we're going to have a full-family dinner tonight instead of tomorrow. I assumed Ariana and Wendell would be going with us to Osaka, though."

"Oh," I responded, frowning. "Well Wendell is in the hospital, but I can ask Ariana…"

"I was thinking about inviting Matt," my mom commented in an off-hand voice. "As a thanks for watching you last weekend…"

"Your mom told me about your teacher. I have to thank him for watching over you," Dad said.

I stared at my mom in shock for a second ready to object. And was Dad actually agreeing? Usually he'd be all anti-boy. Though, Mr. Firay was actually a man... But, invite Mr. Firay _to my birthday dinner_? That had awkwardness written all over it. "But mom—"

"Don't you get along with him?"

"Yeah…"

"And don't you think it's fair to make it up to him because he watched you while I was away?"

A wry smile made its' way onto my face. If she only knew it was the other way around. "I guess."

My mom frowned, glancing at me quickly. "We don't have to if you don't want to. I just feel like I owe him, and I thought it'd be fun…"

"Daphne's being selfish," Basil piped in at the same time that I said, "It's not that!"

I mentally slapped myself for saying that too quickly. My mom gave me a suspicious look. "It's just, um, I don't know. I think it'd be awkward."

"Well what about that other guy you're friends with? Fred?"

"Fred?" I echoed. "I don't know any Fred…"

My mom shook her head. "No, that's not his name. Gerald? Shawn?"

"Sage," I told my mom. "I'm pretty sure we've been over this before."

"Oh yeah! Sage! Why don't you invite him too? Will that make it less awkward?"

Knowing Sage, he'd make it worse. But now I was feeling a little excited. Maybe with Sage there, Mr. Firay would confess… I shook my head. I couldn't get my hopes up. "Okay, I'll call Sage and ask. You ask Mr. Firay."

"Okay," my mom said, sounding as excited as I felt.

"Why are you so excited?" I asked curiously.

"It's nice to see you having an older male figure in your life," she told me. "Especially since your dad isn't around a lot."

My dad gave me a guilty smile. "Sorry I have to work a lot, Pumpkin. We have to get our income somehow, right?"

I let out a small smile of my own. "That's okay, Dad. I'm glad you love your job and working hard..." I swallowed, suddenly feeling tense. Was my mom trying to hint at something with the "having an older male figure in your life" thing? Did she think Mr. Firay was like an adult figure to me? Or an uncle-like figure? I guess that would make sense. Mr. Firay kind of _was _my uncle-in-law if you think about it… A feeling of dread spread through me. I'd be in big trouble if that were what she thought…

"I don't really think of Mr. Firay as my uncle," I told her, laughing nervously.

My mom laughed too, shaking her head. "No, that's not what I meant."

"What did you mean then?"

"Nothing, never mind," my mom told me. "Forget I said anything."

I frowned slightly, but let it drop. "Okay…"

"So," my dad started. "What's been happening in school?"

I responded to my dad's questions, but my mind was elsewhere. Would Mr. Firay feel good enough to go out to eat tomorrow? I prayed silently that he would be able to. Maybe if I played my cards right and I didn't confess, Sage would be right and Mr. Firay would confess first. A small bubble of excitement and anxiousness appeared in my stomach. Tomorrow couldn't come faster.

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **AHH! I PROMISE WARISHA I'D POSTED BEFORE 9:30! D: I'm late! So, sorry if this is a "messy" chapter. I'll fix it soon.

…OH! This is the end of the six-day-updates! Whoa. Okay, so I'm going to update again…eh, Sunday. Tomorrow I'm busy: I'm starting violin lessons, then I'm altar serving, then I'm going out with my family like I usually do on Saturdays…And we're watching a movie tomorrow. :3

To Eleni:…Really? Oh my goodness –I can't believe someone actually checked out my Wattpad works. Thank you. That means…so much to me –thank you. :D

Question for Next Week:

(This is the same as yellow.r0se's since I GAVE her the riddle)

Eleven men walked passed a pear tree. The tree had eleven pears. Each took a pear. How many were left?

Okay! Thanks again for your wonderful reviews!

~Lara


	46. Chapter 46:

**A/N.** Okay. This is a warning. There's no Mr. Firay. No Sage. No Bryant (YAY!). Nor any sign of Ariana, Wendell, and Daphne (Pierce). In this chapter. There _is_ a sign of Puckabrina, Henry, Veronica, Basil, Red (I'm sorry for neglecting you. *sniffles*), and maybe UJ. I think Granny is going to stay in FPL because of the barrier and Mr. Canis is her bodyguard. Sound okay? Okay.

Oh, I guess I didn't clear this up: Daphne lives in an apartment, which is made bigger because of that stretching powder UJ had in book 7, so it looks like an apartment, but is as big as a regular house. :D Oh, and I realize MSeed would be the brother-in-law, not uncle. yellow.r0se's "Juliet Never Wore Converses" kinda messed with me.:3

Well, I see no reason to wait any longer. The winner of the QOFD is Twilightfunatic! The answer was 10 because the guy's name was Each. ^^ Clever, huh? I didn't make this up by the way, but it's a mind-jogger, right? :) Anyways, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 46: Havoc Ensues with the Grimms.<br>**  
>"I'll get it!" Mom shouted, walking for the door.<p>

"Darn it, Daphne, move out of the way!" Basil muttered, shoving me with one arm.

"I don't want to crash my motorcycle!" I complained. I pressed forward, getting closer to my brother. As we headed for a sharp turn, I turned the wheel right, almost colliding with a turtle. What the heck was he doing on the road? I thought the turtle had fallen into a pile of mud just a few seconds ago!

"Eat this!" Basil threw a red shell at me, which I swerved away from at the last minute, shaking my fist at him.

"I thought we were on the same team!"

"I know that. But how do you think it would look if I was beaten by my own sister?"

"I've beaten you plently of times in street races!" Basil and I were head to head, a few feet away from the finish.

"Shut up," Basil said, just as there was a buzzing sound coming from the TV, and a blue shell appeared in front of us, exploding instantly.

"_NO!_" We shouted as Peach, along with Mario, crossed over the finish line.

I smiled sheepishly. "I guess love overcomes all."

Basil threw his Wii controller to the ground. "Damn you, Peach!"

There was a gasp from behind us. "Basil! Watch your mouth!"

My mom was giving him a disapproving look as was Sabrina while Puck cracked a grin.

"It seems the little man has learned the English language," he remarked, coming over and ruffling Basil's hair. "Good work, buddy."

Sabrina punched his shoulder. "Don't encourage him! He's only eleven."

"Eleven, Shmeven. What's the difference? He's going to learn all about them anyways."

"Just like you learned about the birds and the bees from my dad?"

Puck coughed. "That's...different."

"How is it different?"

"It just is." He looked away from Sabrina's glaring eyes.

"Hi, 'Brina!" I greeted happily, giving her a hug, and saving Puck from further questioning. "How was the drive?"

"Horrible. Puck drives like a maniac."

Puck winked. "You know you love it."

Sabrina stared at him. "That was a fail attempt."

"Hey, I tried, didn't I?"

Basil groaned. "Ugh. Can you, like, stop flirting for two minutes? Every time you two come here, it's nonstop."

"How would you, like, know that?" Puck mocked. "You've been in New Jersey for, like, the past four months! And don't, like, be a hypocrite -Henry, like, told us you met a girl."

Sabrina smirked at an embarrassed Basil. "You can't avoid this subject, buddy."

I grinned at my brother. "What's she like? Is she pretty?"

"She's-"

"What's her name?" Sabrina demanded. "I swear, if she has some girly or weird name like Fruity, Laura or Snooki or..."

"Uh-"

"What would you rate her," Puck pressed, "on a scale of 1 to 10?"

"What the he-"

"Have you talked to her?" I asked. "Does she show an interest in you, too?"

Basil cradled his head in his hands. "_Stop! _You're worse than Dad, Mom, and Uncle Jake combined!"

"I find that offensive," a mock horrified voice said. "Your mom is bad enough. She's asked you if you shown her your baby pictures to the girl -which I hope you said no to."

Basil sighed as Uncle Jake shot him a cocky grin. "If it's not Sabrina, it's Puck. If not Puck, it's Daphne or Mom. If it's not them, it's _you_."

Uncle Jake sighed dramatically. "That's life, chap."

"No, it's not."

"I know."

I rolled my eyes. I think it was time to save Basil. "Enough banter. Did Mom say dinner was ready, Uncle Jake?"

"Just about. Hank and Red are going to get the pizza."

"We're buying?" Sabrina said skeptically. "Why can't Mom just make -oh, never mind."

Puck grinned. "She can make cookies for dessert, though."

"That's true." Uncle Jake nodded his head. "But I can also zap up some brownies if you want something else sweet for dessert."

"Aren't you addicted to magic?" Puck questioned.

Uncle Jake smiled sheepishly. "Then Sabrina can do it."

"I have an addiction, too, Uncle Jake."

"Let me do it," I offered, smiling at his ignorance. "I don't have any addiction, and I kinda miss using magic. Just a little."

"If you say so, Pumpkin, but don't try to scarf all of them down before dinner -I'm watching you."

I rolled my eyes, and Puck gasped. "You have the same eye-roll as your sister!"

"Duh, hence the term _sisters_," Sabrina retorted. I laughed.

The door creaked open, and suddenly, the aroma of pizza entered the room. Red smiled, opening the door wider for Dad to bring in the six boxes in. "Happy birthday, Daphne."

"Thanks, Red," I said to her, giving her a hug. "Did you say goodbye to Tom?"

She smiled sadly. "Yeah. I'm going to miss this place, but I miss Papa a lot. I'll visit again, of course!"

Uncle Jake helped Dad bring in the boxes. "Why did you buy so many?"

Dad nodded his head towards Puck and I. "We need to sedate the beasts, don't we?"

"I resent that," Puck said, patting his muscled stomach. "This is all abs, old man. Though, I can't say the same for the Munchkin."

My face flamed. "Hey! You still scarf down two pizzas a minute. I've minimized my eating habits to one each minute."

"I finish a pizza every ten minutes -you're still chubby compared to the average human." Mom said, grinning as she entered the room.

I sniffed. "Well, we aren't average humans, are we?"

"Touché. Anyways, since the pizza's here, we can go eat now. Let's go to the kitchen, everyone!" We all ran for the kitchen, starving. The seating was like this: At one head, I sat there, with Red, Basil, and Mom to my right, and Sabrina, Puck, and Uncle Jake to my left. Dad sat at the other head. After we said our prayers, we dug in. Uncle Jake gave Puck the whole box, and the five boxes left were for the rest of us.

"Red," Mom said, smiling. "What time tomorrow is Uncle Jake bringing you back?"

Red put her slice down. "Um, I think in the morning. We're supposed to be back in Ferryport at about nine or so."

"We're gonna miss you, Red," I said, sighing. "And on my birthday..."

Her eyes lit up. "Oh! I forgot to give you this. It's your present."

"Presents already? Lucky," Puck complained, taking another bite out of his 5th slice. "Whenever it's my birthday, you guys wait until the end. Why is that?"

"Because you're a spoiled brat."

"Oooh, that hurts, honey. I forgive you because you love me."

"What did I say about the nicknames?" Sabrina groaned.

"Would you rather I call you Grimm?"

"Anything but sweetie pie. Nor honey, sugarlips, or buttercup. Just...no."

"_Stop flirting!_" Basil groaned. I cracked a grin, as did Uncle Jake and the rest of the family. We would so tease him later.

Red took out a small bag, smiling at me. "Happy birthday."

I opened the bag to find a pair of earrings and a pony tail. "Wow! These are so cute." Because Red was Red, she gave me crimson raindrop earrings and the hair tie had a red rose attached. "Aw, thank you, Red!"

Suddenly, a mysterious smile came over her face. "I bought these just for tomorrow's dinner at Osaka's, you know."

Puck gasped. "You're going to Osaka? No fair! I want Japanese food!"

My face flushed. "W-why for tomorrow?"

Red smirked at me. "You're going out with Sage and Mr. Firay, right?"

Basil held the same expression. "Ooooh, Daphne's going out with older men."

"Hank, you sure you're okay with this?" Uncle Jake teased Dad. "They might jump her."

"No they wouldn't! They're honest to good people!" I protested.

They ignored me. "Well, Veronica's going, so she can kick their...butts if they try anything," Dad said, looking over at Basil.

Basil rolled his eyes. "I know what an as-"

Veronica gasped. "_Basil! _You are only eleven years old! Where are you hearing all these words?"

Puck grinned. "I bet his lover is a cusser."

Basil sputtered. "S-shut up! Jay does not cuss! And we are not lovers!"

We were all silent. Then a creepy smile formed on Mom's face. "...Her name's Jay?" Soon, we were bombarding Basil with questions.

"What's her last name?"

"Is she really from New Jersey?"

"Does she have any siblings?"

"What's her appetite like on a scale of Sabrina to Daphne?" Puck asked.

"What pick-up lines have you used on her?" Uncle Jake pressed.

Basil stared at all of us before running up to his room, screaming that we were stalkers. "I'll never tell you!"

Uncle Jake laughed, "Gosh, I love that kid. He's going to be a ladies man when he grows up."

Sabrina crossed her arms over her chest. "This Jay girl better be good. I don't want her to break Basil's heart."

"Isn't it the other way around?" Puck asked.

"Basil's pretty fragile. Even though he acts tough, he's not. I think he's still a bit freaked out that he was kidnapped as a baby, you know. Basil is pretty weak inside. I'm really hoping this girl does him justice."

_I don't want her to break Basil's heart..._I mulled over. I don't want Mr. Firay to break _my _heart. I frowned slightly. Mr. Firay did say he wanted me to reconfess, but he could reject me, couldn't he? No, after all we've been through, I must've had an impression on him. There was nothing to worry about, right?

"Daphne," Puck said, snapping me out of my thoughts. "What are you thinking about?"

"Huh?"

"Well you're obviously upset about something," he remarked. "You're easy to read."

I sniffed. "As if I hadn't heard that one before."

"Can I ask...how's Mustardseed doing?"

"Who?"

Puck stared at me with a quizzical expression. "My brother. Your teacher, remember?"

"Oh, Mr. Firay." I tried to control my blush. I was so used to calling him 'Matt' and 'Mr. Firay' that I forgot his real name. "He's doing fine. He's coming to dinner with us tomorrow. Along with Sage."

"Who's Sage?" Sabrina asked.

"Mr-Mustardseed's friend. He sometimes picks me up from school...He's really nice," I added after seeing Mom's face.

"Well, I'm going to meet him first before I take your word," she said. "He could be some mobster or something."

I mentally laughed. If only she knew. "Well, couldn't Mustardseed be a mobster, too?"

Mom thought about it. "I guess so. But that's out of the question."

This time, I did start smiling. "Anyways, do we get to eat cake?"

Uncle Jake stood up from his seat. "Yep! I'll go get it. You actually get to choose what kind you want."

"What?" I asked, but he had disappeared into the kitchen.

"Hey, Daphne," Puck said.

"Yeah?"

"Can I have my brother's phone number?"

His question threw me off. "What? Why?"

"I think I need to patch things up between us, you know?"

Sabrina smirked at him. "I think that's one of the most intelligent things you've ever said in your life."

He grinned back. "I try to be," he said, then turning to me. "So?"

I blinked. "Oh! Of course! Here, you can call him with my phone." I handed it to him, and he went into the living room.

Sabrina looked at me. "I think he's growing up."

I cracked a smile. "You finally realized that after three years of being married to him?"

She rolled her eyes at me. "His personality, I mean."

"I know." I looked to Puck, who was pacing around the living room in a serious discussion. "Of course, I don't want him to become a business like person -I like that he's funny and annoying."

"Me, too," Sabrina said. I mentally 'aww'ed. It was times like these that I loved my sister and Puck -they were just so adorable.

Uncle Jake came out, smiling, holding a tray in his hand. "Here's the cake!"

We all stared at the plate in disbelief.

Dad looked at Uncle Jake with an incredulous expression. "Jake."

"Yes, Hank?"

"This," Mom shook her head, "is a chocolate bar."

"And there's an ice cube on the tray," Red pointed out.

"What's that, a piece of bread?" I said, picking it up.

"Why is there a half eaten cookie?" Sabrina demanded. "Did you eat her cake?"

Uncle Jake laughed. "I told you. Daphne gets to pick her cake! The chocolate bar represents a brownie cake, the ice cube stands for ice cream cake, the bread is for regular cake, and the cookie is a cookie cake –I did take a bite out of it, though." He smiled sheepishly. "So, what kind do you want?"

I blinked. "Wait, so I pick one, then I zap it and it turns into the cake I want?"

"Pretty much."

I pursed my lips. "It's too cold in New York for ice cream cake..." I pushed the chocolate bar, the bread, and the cookie together. "I can make a combination, right?"

Uncle Jake smiled. "Of course you can!"

"What are the magical consequences of this, Jake?" Dad said warily.

"You get a full, satisfied stomach after eating," Uncle Jake joked. "There actually are no consequences of this -except that you might get cravings for sweets. Like, _major _cravings."

I grinned excitedly. "That's okay! I'm going to eat a lot anyway."

Uncle Jake handed me the wand. "All you have to say is, "Sweets, sweets, sugar and spice. Sugar, spice, and everything nice."

After I recited the words, the ingredients mixed together in a circle, spinning like a tornado. When the tornado slowed, left was a very good-looking cake. It was taller that it was wider -it was probably two feet tall. One full side was made of brownies, the next was vanilla cake with purple frosting on it, and the last side was a mix of cookies -chocolate chip, sugar, oatmeal, frosted, and anything else you could name. At the top of the cake were eighteen lit candles. A bit over the top, but it was delicious looking.

Puck almost dropped my phone when he came back into the room. "That. Is. Amazing."

I agreed. "Best birthday cake ever." After we called Basil down -he had finally cooled down, but there was a tint of red still on his cheeks- we cut the cake into twelve pieces. Puck was the first to take a bite and groaned his approval. We all ate and followed his example.

"I'm addicted already," Sabrina mumbled, smiling at her cake.

Red ate slowly, savoring it. "Mmm. Granny Relda will have to make some of this when I get back to Ferryport."

Basil smooshed some of the cake into his face. "And it smells freshly made. Gosh, it even smells like real brownies."

I grinned at my brother, tapping my cheek. "You have a little right there."

He swiped his hand over his cheek, and licked his hand. "My face even tastes good."

Puck snorted, and I shot him a questioning look. His eyes glittered with mischief.

"What's with that look?" Sabrina asked warily.

He put his hand on top of his piece of the cake. "Oh, nothing, sweetcheeks." He patted her cheeks with his cake filled hand after that. Sabrina gasped when she felt the icing on her face. I stifled a giggle.

"Oh? This is funny, Daphne?" she asked, grinning at me.

"'Course not." I laughed, giving myself away.

"What about this?"

I felt something on my neck and I squealed, standing. "Ew! Sabrina!" I cupped some of my cake, throwing it at her. Unfortunately, she ducked and Uncle Jake's hair was now a dirty blonde.

Dad laughed at his brother, but not until Uncle Jake shoved some down his shirt. "Jake! You little bast-"

"Aw, lighten up, Hen-Hen!" Mom said, then "accidentally" dropped some inside his pants. "_Oops_."

Red started laughing, as did Basil. Then I realized. "Hey, Red! You're the only one who hasn't gotten cake on yourself!" She stopped laughing as we all grabbed some cake. Red stood up, taking her cake with her as we advanced on her.

"C-come on! I didn't do anything!" She was back up against the kitchen door.

"Basil didn't do anything and he has cake on his face," I said, grinning.

"That's because he chose to!"

"But we didn't," Puck sang.

Red stared at all of us. "But I have something to say first."

We waited for her response. She closed her eyes, then Red cried out. "_This means war!_" Red threw cake at all of us, nailing us in the chest before running out of the room with a laugh.

I threw some cake at the couch that she had ran past. Puck started flitting around the room, aiming at all of us -Sabrina mainly. Basil kept throwing his cake at me, saying it was payback for beating him at Mario Kart. Mom kept shoving things down the boys pants -Dad's pants looked blown up, as did Uncle Jake's. Because Puck was flying around the room, his pants were cake free. Puck suddenly found a Nerf gun, shoving the lasts of his cake inside, shooting at us, then ducking into the other rooms. We ran after him like angry Indians.

I didn't know how this birthday could get any better.

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **:D That last part was so much fun to write. I hope you liked this! I've been sitting on my computer for almost seven hours -no kidding. :D Maybe longer. I remember going on the computer at about...ten, maybe? Then at eleven I went to the kitchen to get breakfast, then I went back to the computer, then went down for lunch, then stayed on for four hours, then...you get the idea. :D

Replies, replies:

killerbunnies: Thanks! ^^ Ah, no. None of that happened in this chapter, haha. :D Oh, good –you see it, too. :D The guy's name was Each. :D Yep. That was Daphne Pierce. Good eye.

Rockinjellybeans: Thanks! :D Your words mean so much to me. Thanks. :D

rosebud143: That's okay. :D Mean bosses suck. Aw, thank you! I love your words! And you were correct! …what? Base four? What? XD

Twilightfunatic: Good job! ^^ Congrats on getting the right answer!

(I'm not sure who this was…But this is a reply to their review for chapter 43): Lol, I guess you can see it that way –the tickling could be sexual harassment thing. :D Yeah. Lol, their Grimm pillow. ;D Pun intended.

Question of the Whatever: What's your favorite type of cake and why? Have you had any funny experiences with it (like the Grimms just did? ^^)?

Sorry this took me a long time-like I said. I was stuck for a while. :D

Have a good week! I shall update tomorrow with the beginning of the other dinner scene. It'll be split up into two parts, okay? :D Thanks.

**SO. If. You. Can. Understand. Me. Update. Tomorrow. Yay. Dinner. Good. Okay?**

I'm sorry for the baby talk -there are just some people who are getting on my nerves. I'm okay with people who ask nicely, but the not-so-nice, that message was for you.

Paalam for now!

~Lara


	47. Chapter 47:

**A/N. **I only have two reviews I feel the need to reply to so...

killerbunies: Food fights _are _awesome. I was at a Girl Scouts camp in 2nd grade or so and we had this flash mob in the cafeteria. Someone through a tomato and said, "Booo!" as a joke, but then they found ketchup in their hair. As they say, the rest is history. ;D Lol –older Basil's so much fun to write. Yep –you know, -and this is unfortunate- at my school, people in my sister's grade (She's in second) are...*chokes*...d...day..._dating._ Thank goodness she's not because my mom might've flipped out on her. It seems every time I bring a NERF gun in this story, Puck comes with it. ;D Did you notice that? ^^ I so want to do that, but I have no opportunities. D: NERF guns weren't allowed at my aunt's wedding –grr. Thanks! ^^

Andrea: ...Andrea? From school? I'm just thinking because the one _from _school said she had checked out my Things Happen for a Reason story on Wattpad...? Um, anyways, if you're not, ignore that first part. :3 'Sides that, thank you! Your comment made me really happy! :D

Ummm...oh! The cake question, right? Bum ba da bum ba da bum...

I have two winners again –I couldn't decide...

" My favorite cake is probably rainbow cake. It was actually vanilla, but it had been dyed into different colors. It was so much fun then regular vanilla though!" –That is an amazing cake, Mai. That's awesome –I WANT THAT CAKE!

"Oh and my favorite cake is chocolate because... Well... I'm not sure, it's just amazing to eat. I remember once on my birthday, there was this huge chocolate princess cake(I was like...8) and my cousin tripped me and I fell right on it. I cried then, buts it's kind of funny now." –A worthy lol moment, right, Rockstargurl444? XD Thanks for sharing your experience with us!

Hm. Do I have to add anything? *lightbulb* OHH! I guess I should tell you this epical tale...

After the chapter. ^^ '

Also, _Mr. Firay __**ONLY**__ doesn't like sushi. _He doesn't have a problem with any other things like...onigiri, is it, Epiphant on Toast? Something like that...And I think the other is miso...If it makes you REALLY happy, I'll choose one for him to order. ;D

Before you read on, I want to say I'm sorry there isn't any fluff in this chapter..._yet_. This is really split into two parts, but I'm just naming this chapter. 47 and the next 48. Sound okay? ^^

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 47: <strong>Runs in the Family

"Happy birthday, Daphne!" Ariana cried, throwing her arms around me.

"How many times are you going to say that to me today?" I responded with a laugh, pulling her arms around me. This was the fourth time today.

"Every time I see you!" Ariana notified me. "You're officially a legal adult!"

"Well actually, she won't be an adult-adult until she's twenty-one," Colin corrected, grinning at me. "But it's close enough."

"Hey! I can be thrown in jail for crimes now!" I said enthusiastically. "No more Juvie!"

"And you can't date anyone older than eighteen without any legal problems," Ariana told me with a wink.

My faces grew hot and I looked away from her. "I guess so…"

"So we're all going to the fair tomorrow?" Colin asked, pulling my lunch towards him. "Are you going to eat your brownie?"

"Taking the roll of Lance, I see," Willow commented, rolling her eyes. "It's Daphne's birthday. Let her have her brownie."

Colin frowned at Willow. "You spoil all my fun."

"I'm your girlfriend, I'm supposed to."

I laughed as Colin grinned. "Colin, you can have my brownie. I don't want them –my brother got a lot of it stuck in my hair last night. And I have cookies from Tina, anyway." I shook the bag of chocolate chip cookies Tina had baked me for my birthday. "I'm set."

"Awesome," Colin responded, taking my brownie of my tray. "You can have the tray."

"Whoa! Highlight of my day!" I responded with mock excitement.

"Hey, Daph..." Ariana looked at me with a sad face. "When did _Rojo _leave?"

"This morning. But don't worry, she said she'll visit again," I assured her, as sad as her. "Though, I think Tom is the saddest." We glanced at the boy, who was swirling his melted cup of ice cream around with a spoon, symbolically swirling into his misery.

Ariana frowned. "Poor Tom. It is better to have lost, than never to have loved at all, though. Right?"

"I guess so," I replied, smiling a little. I wonder what Puck would've done if he'd known that Ariana quoted Shakespeare.

"What are you doing tonight for your birthday?" Willow asked, changing the gloomy subject. "Going somewhere with your mom?"

"Yeah. My mom is taking me, Sage and Mr… Mr. Ross, Sage's dad, out to eat," I corrected myself, blushing. That was too close.

Willow wagged her eyebrows. "Who's Sage?"

"Daphne's handsome elder companion," Ariana responded for me. "Daphne likes older guys."

"Ariana!"

Willow laughed. "Don't be embarrassed about that!"

"I'm not!" I responded, my face still burning. "I don't have a relationship with Sage, he's just a friend."

"Or is he?"

"Just a friend," I assured Willow.

She shrugged. "That's too bad. You could use a boyfriend, Daphne."

Before I could respond someone tapped on my shoulder, making me jump. I twisted around in my seat to see an underclassman I didn't recognize holding out a small, yellow piece of paper.

"Daphne Grimm?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah…?"

"This is for you, from Mr. Firay. He wants to see you for a moment."

The younger student thrust the piece of paper closer to my face and I quickly grabbed it from him before he could stab my eye out. As soon as the paper left his hand, he turned and made his way away from my table. My eyes went from the boy to the note and I almost smiled at the sight of Mr. Firay's sloppy handwriting.

"Mr. Firay is here today?" Willow asked excitedly. "Yay! He's been out sick for like, forever."

"What's it say?" Ariana prodded, looking at it over my shoulder at the note.

"Nothing much, he just wants to see me before lunch ends," I told her, scanning over the note again. "I guess I can leave early…"

Ariana smirked at me, coming closer, and lowering her voice. "You two alone, huh? And it's your birthday…"

"Ariana! Shh!"

"What? I'm just saying. You're a legal adult now, Daphne."

Ariana's words sent a shock through my body. I was a legal adult now. I was eighteen. Mr. Firay wanted me to go to his classroom, where we would be together alone… The perfect chance to confess?

"You're blushing," Ariana chirped, a grin spreading across her face. "What are you thinking?"

"Nothing," I snapped, turning my face down.

"Sure, Daphne, sure. What are you thinking?"

"Nothing!"

"You can't lie to me."

I blanked at Ariana, who returned my look with an eyebrow raised. "Why does everyone say that?"

"Say what?"

"That I can't lie to them!"

Ariana laughed. "It's because you're so easy to see through, and you're just not a good liar."

I scowled, crossing my arms. "Gee, thanks."

"No problem!"

"I'm going to go to Mr. Firay's room now," I said, pushing myself off my seat. "I might be back, I might not…"

Ariana raised her eyebrows suggestively, but I just rolled my eyes. I bid my adieus to my friends again and made my way out of the cafeteria. The halls were dead and quiet as I walked down them and I could hear my own footsteps reverberating against the walls. Anxiety suddenly filled me as I entered the science wing, and continued to grow as I headed for Mr. Firay's room. I stopped in front of it and took a deep breath before pushing it open.

Mr. Firay didn't enter my vision. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion as I stared at his empty desk. I glanced around the room only to find it equally as empty. The supply room door called me and I made my way towards it, opening the door, and poking my head in. Still no Mr. Firay.

"Where…?" I muttered, taking a step further into the supply room.

"Boo."

My heart leapt into my throat as someone grabbed my shoulders and whispered into my ear. I twirled around, coming face-to-face with Mr. Firay. He grinned at me, his shoulders shaking in silent laughter. I scowled at him.

"What do you want?" I asked moodily.

"You jumped so hard," he commented, grinning wider.

I blushed and quickly turned my head away from Mr. Firay. "Haha, so funny."

"Oh, don't be a killjoy."

"What do you want?" I repeated, my face still hot.

I heard Mr. Firay sigh. "I need you to tell your mom that I'll meet you guys at the restaurant because I have something to do first. I won't be late, but it'll just be easier to meet there."

"Okay," I responded, turning to face Mr. Firay again. He stared at me intently for a moment and I raised an eyebrow, suddenly feeling self-conscious. "What?"

"You have a little something…" He raised a hand up to my face and brushed his finger along my lower lip gently.

Immediately I turned red, slapping his hand away in surprise. He raised an eyebrow in amusement, a smirk appearing on his lips. Doing my best to ignore his expression, I quickly ran the back of my hand over my mouth to rid whatever he had seen on it.

"What are we celebrating tonight?" Mr. Firay asked in a confused tone.

I stared at him blankly. By now I could tell when he was kidding, so he didn't fool me this time. Mr. Firay smirked as I did my best to ignore his teasing. He obviously knew…

"Oh, that's right," Mr. Firay continued, nodding. "This is a thank-you for watching you last weekend. How nice of your mother to invite me. Osaka is my favorite restaurant."

"What a coincidence, mine too," I responded, smiling. "But I thought you didn't like sushi?"

"I don't. But the steak they have is my favorite. As are the onigiri and the miso soup."

"That's weird because I like their steak too."

"So, it's okay if I meet you guys there, right?"

"Of course," I said, smiling. "Though I wonder why my mom would invite you since it is my birthday and you're just my teacher…"

Mr. Firay frowned, obviously not expecting my response. I did my best to keep a straight face and hide the smirk that wanted to slip onto my face. He teased me all the time, so wasn't it fair that I could tease him back sometimes?

"It's not that weird," Mr. Firay told me with a shrug.

"Yes it is."

Mr. Firay frowned at me. "You don't want me to go?"

"That's not it!" I said quickly. Mr. Firay smirked in triumph and I realized my mistake. Another blush appeared on my face and I looked at the ground in defeat. Mr. Firay played dirty.

"I have a _confession_ to make," Mr. Firay started. "It's not a big _confession_, but a _confession_ nonetheless."

Immediately I understood what he was trying to do. He was trying to hint that I should re-confess to him! My eyes widened in shock and I stared at him for a minute, trying to form a coherent word. Mr. Firay returned my look with an innocent one, trying to act like he was oblivious to what he was trying to do.

"What is it?" I finally managed to ask, keeping my voice steady.

"I have to _confess _that I feel bad about forgetting that today was your birthday."

I narrowed my eyes. Sure he did. "Oh, don't worry about it."

"Do you have anything you want to say to me?"

"Nope."

Mr. Firay's expression became confused for a split-second until he quickly rearranged it into his normal smug one. "Is that so?"

I nodded. "Yep."

If Mr. Firay thought I was going to confess twice, he was dead wrong. I was going to take Sage's idea. It was only fair that he should be the one to confess after the disaster last time. My face heated up slightly from the memory, but not enough so that someone could tell I was blushing.

Suddenly the bell rang, signaling that lunch was over. Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow at me and I returned his look with a shrug.

"Time for class," I told him, moving around him so I could go back to the classroom. "We can talk again tonight…"

"Right," I heard Mr. Firay respond, and if I wasn't mistaken, he sounded a little annoyed.

This brought a small smirk to my face. Oh, this was going to be an interesting night…

^%^%^%^%^%^%^%^%^%^%^RAINING ON THE MOUNTAINS! ^%^%^%^%^%^%^%^%

"Daphne, are you almost ready?"

"In a moment!" I called down to my mom, quickly coating my eyelashes with a thin layer of mascara. Sabrina always told me to use very little make up (Puck loved it when she had none), so I did as told. When I was finished I tossed my mascara back into my make-up box and made sure nothing had smudged. Everything looked okay.

My mom had ordered me to wear something dressy to the restaurant, since it was a fancy place. Eventually I had chosen the crimson dress I had worn to my junior year prom. It wasn't too elegant, but it wasn't too plain either. It had transparent sleeves -but still looked somewhat strapless- and seemed to fit to my curve perfectly. There was a small dip in the neckline, showing off just enough skin to look attractive and appropriate. The hem of the dress came to about an inch longer than mid-thigh, and I ran my hands over it, trying to make it go a little further. Short dresses usually weren't my style, but tonight was a little different.

Since I was trying to get Mr. Firay to confess to me. Admittedly I knew it was going to be a long shot since my mom and Sage would be there, but it was still worth a shot. I would have to find a way to get Mr. Firay and myself alone… maybe Sage could help me with that.

A stray piece of hair fell into my face and I quickly brushed it back, glancing at myself in the mirror. My hair didn't look horrible. I did use both of Red's birthday gifts to me, wearing the raindrops earrings; my hair was tied up with a ponytail. Though, it looked like I had a rose stuck in my hair. The only real thing I had done with it was straighten it before putting in the hair tie, so it looked the same as it did every day Luckily my chocolate hair color matched well with my dress.

"Daphne!"

"I'm coming!"

With one last glance in the mirror I finally tore myself away from it, grabbing my small red purse off my bed. I hurried down the stairs to where my mom was waiting by the door. She appraised me with her eyes, a smile spreading onto her face.

"You look hot."

"Mom," I muttered, feeling my face heat up in embarrassment. "Don't say that…"

"But it's the truth."

"You look great too," I told her, looking at her modest black dress. It was a lot like mine, except not as tight.

"Well thank you," she responded. "Now let's go."

On the way to the Osaka I stayed quiet, my nerves getting the best of me. I drummed my fingers on the window mindlessly, chewing on my bottom lip. Why had I dressed up so much? I should have gone for a more casual look. Were Sage and Mr. Firay dressing up? Knowing my mom, she had probably told them to. Maybe they would show up in tuxedos…

We arrived at the restaurant far too quickly. My mom smiled at me as she shut of the car. I tried to smile back, but it probably looked more like a grimace. My heart was pounding so hard I thought my chest was going to burst. I didn't have anything to be so nervous about! My mom was taking Mr. Firay to dinner, not me. This wasn't a date. This was a birthday and thank-you dinner. Sure I was dressed up; but I didn't have to be so nervous about that!

"C'mon honey," my mom urged, opening her door. "Matt and Sam are probably here already."

"Sage," I told my mom, letting out a rush of air I didn't realize I was holding. "Try to remember it."

"Sage," my mom repeated under her breath. "Sage, Sage."

Together we made our way towards the entrance of the Osaka. It felt like the butterflies in my stomach were having a raging college party. I swallowed nervously, clenching my fists. Why was I so nervous? It was so annoying! I was only going to dinner with my teacher…

"Mom?"

"Yes?"

"Why did you invite Mr. Firay?" I asked bluntly, getting the question that had been on my mind for the past few days finally off it.

My mom looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "I thought I told you. As a thank you…"

"But don't you think it's a little weird… since he's my teacher?"

My mom smiled at me. "You know, your father and I were seven years apart."

I stared at my mom dumbfounded. "W-what?"

"I was seventeen when I started dating him. He was twenty-four," my mom continued. "When I was in high school he was my American Literature teacher."

"What?" I reiterated. That was the only thing I could say. My mind racing with this new information: My dad was my mom teacher at one point?

My mom laughed, turning to face me fully. "Isn't it scary how much mother and daughter are alike?"

"Wait, wait," I said, shaking my head. "Mom, Mr. Firay and I aren't—"

"But you like him right?"

I blushed, giving myself away. My mom laughed again, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Daphne, you don't have to lie to me. I'd be a hypocrite if I said you couldn't be together. Besides, I'd have to be blind to not realize how you feel about each other."

"Wait. How do you know?"

My mom suddenly looked embarrassed. "Don't get angry, but remember that time I quote, unquote ran into Matt at the supermarket?"

"Yes…"

"I listened in on your conversation after that for a little bit," my mom admitted, looking sheepish. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have… but I was curious."

My eyes flew wide open and I stared at her in shock. She had listened to our conversation? But we had talked about the gangsters! "Mom, did you hear everything?"

My mom shook her head. "No, I actually was making some phone calls… But I sort of also sneaked a peek into the room, and that was all I needed to know. Then when I said I was going home, I also listened in again…"

"So wait… is this dinner… Are you trying to set us up?"

Once again, my mom blushed and nodded. "In a way, yes."

"So that's why you're so calm about the 'he's my teacher' situation," I commented, still a bit surprised.

"Daphne, it shouldn't matter whether or not he's your teacher," my mom told me. "Trust me, when I was in high school I did and it only put a riff between your father and myself for a time."

"How come you've never told me dad used to be your teacher?"

My mom laughed, scratching the back of my head. "I didn't want you to be creeped out…"

"Well, I'd be a hypocrite if I was," I told my mom, smiling slightly. "But I have another question. Why are you so willing to get Mr. Firay and I together?"

My mom smiled. "Because I got the feeling that you two were meant for each other, as cheesy as that sounds. You two reminded me of your father and myself when we were younger. And I know what situation you're in now, and I just wanted to help you two out."

"What would you say if I told you that you were wrong and I didn't like him?"

"Well, I'd be pretty embarrassed." We both laughed at that and my mom put an arm over my shoulder. "Come on, let's go in now."

The warmth of the Osaka was a welcoming feeling compared to the chilly air outside. Delicious scents of Japanese food and other cooking filled my nose, making my stomach rumble. We made our way up to the waiting area and my mom went to get our reservation.

I wondered around the waiting area, looking at the paintings on the wall. Half of them looked like a small child had drawn them. A small grin made its' way onto my face as I distracted myself by finding funny images in each canvas. Art was really entertaining sometimes.

Suddenly something hard hit my side, sending me staggering in the high heels that I was very unused to wearing. Luckily I managed to stop myself from falling by grasping the edge of a very convenient bench.

I heard a familiar laugh. "Dude, Matt. Be careful. You almost just knocked this fine, young lady over."

"I'm so sorry," an even more familiar voice apologized and I felt a strong grasp on my upper arm, pulling me into an erect position.

I didn't turn around right away, suddenly too embarrassed to face Mr. Firay. However, his hand didn't leave my arm and I felt him tugging me around to face him. My eyes were on the ground at first, but I slowly raised them to his face.

Mr. Firay was staring at me in complete shock. I wouldn't have been surprised to see his jaw on the ground. I quickly glanced at Sage. He was looking back at me just as surprised, except his jaw was practically on the floor. I almost laughed at his reaction.

"Daphne," Mr. Firay finally breathed, letting my arm go.

"Mr… Matt," I corrected myself boldly.

Now Mr. Firay's jaw did drop, but he quickly closed it again and turned his face away from me. Which was good, because a blush appeared at my face from my bold use of his name. While his head was turned I used the opportunity to check him out.

To my pleasant surprise, he was wearing a tuxedo. It was black and he was wearing a white shirt underneath the jacket and a red tie that was the same shade as my dress. I smiled at the coincidence. When Mr. Firay turned back to me I realized just how handsome he looked in the tux. I almost forgot how to breathe.

"You look… You look…"

"Gorgeous!" Sage cried, gathering me up in a bear hug. "Damn Daphne, I could have mistaken you for Miss America."

I blushed as Sage crushed me to death. "Don't over exaggerate," I managed to choke out.

"Ow!" Sage cried, suddenly pulling away from me. "What was that for, Matt?"

"Couldn't you tell you were killing her?" Mr. Firay responded, frowning at him.

Sage smirked smugly. "You're just jealous that I thought of the best compliment."

I blushed, looking away from the pair of men. "Just forget it…"

"Let's go find your mom now," Sage suggested. "I want to meet my future mother-in-law."

"Don't get your hopes too high," I heard Mr. Firay mutter to Sage.

I started walking back towards the reservation area and I could hear Sage and Mr. Firay follow me. My face was still hot from Sage's comment and my palms were sweaty. As much as Sage's opinion mattered to me, Mr. Firay's was more important.

"So Daphne, do you think I look good?"

I glanced at Sage. He too was dressed in a tuxedo like Mr. Firay's. Except Sage had a deep blue tie. I smiled at him, nodding my head. "I'm not going to lie, Sage. You look pretty sexy."

"Thank you," Sage responded with a grin. "I bet if we pretended we were a couple, we'd be the sexiest thing in the world."

I heard Mr. Firay snort behind us. I glanced at Sage, who winked at me. My eyes widened slightly as I understood what Sage was doing. Making Mr. Firay jealous. He inconspicuously nodded his head as he noticed I had figured out what he was attempting to do. I responded with his nod just as secretly.

"What about Matt?"

I glanced back at Mr. Firay, who was glaring at Sage. "He looks nice."

Mr. Firay's head turned towards me but I quickly faced the front again, not wanting to see his expression. I was torn between amusement and guilt. Part of me told me Mr. Firay should be the one being teased tonight, but I also felt bad for him. However, Sage's plans never failed to work…

My mom was waiting with a waiter by the front of the restaurant. When she noticed us a bright smile spread across her lips. Sage stepped forwards, holing out a hand.

"You must be Daphne's mom," Sage greeted her as she placed her hand into his. "Nice to meet you, I'm Sage."

"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Sage," my mom responded, sending me an impressed look. "You can call me Veronica."

"Sure thing!"

"Shall I take you to your table then?" the waiter asked my mom, his eyes glancing over our group. His eyes lingered on me and I felt self-conscious, quickly adverting my gaze.

"Sure!" my mom chirped, smiling at him.

We started following the waiter through the restaurant to the back. My mom struck up a conversation with Sage and I played with my fingers to distract myself. Mr. Firay was now walking besides me and it took all of my will power to not look at him. Suddenly my shoe caught on something and I fell forwards. Before I could hit the ground, I felt an arm around my waist.

"Careful," Mr. Firay breathed in my ear as he set me up straight. "That's twice tonight you've almost fallen."

"Thank you," I muttered, red-faced.

"You look beautiful tonight, Daphne," Mr. Firay suddenly commented in a quiet voice, his mouth still by my ear.

Immediately I blushed, swallowing nervously. Tonight was going to be a lot harder than expected.

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **...I know Veronica and Hen were not seven years apart, and that they did not date as student/teacher. I was just thinking to myself, "Wait, why am I making Veronica so okay with Daphne liking MSeed?" I had to make something up. But let me tell you: **That info is not accurate! **I don't believe they ever met that way –maybe playing baseball or something. ^^

Story time, kiddies! XD

Okay, so like a week before I had to go back to school in August last year, my purse disappeared. I insisted to my parents in was in the house because they kept thinking I had left it in one of the seats at Germain Arena where we were watching Alegria (I loved it –you should watch it if it comes to your town), but I knew it was in the house...somewhere. The bad thing about losing it, though, was the fact that it had almost 100 dollars, had my first wallet (and some loose change. ;D), and my Nintendo. *sobs* MY NINTENDOOO! So yeah, it wasn't found until...two days ago? Three days ago? Well, Saturday. XD We were changing the beds in my house (the guest room bed would go to Kian, my sister and I would get the bed from Kian's room so we would have three beds (It's a bunk bed thing), and the guest room would be used as my mom's office.) and my mom moved away this chair (I'm not sure what their called...OH! BEAN BAGS!) and this stand away, and there –low and behold- was my wallet. I won't iie –I started crying. After over half a year (+6 months or so) if looking, it was just behind that stupid chair. -_- But yay! Happy ending! XD

**Question of the Whatever: **If you were in gym class, and there were stairs you had to climb (You know what a trapezoid looks like? Well those two slanted parts: /_\ are where you'd run) and someone was hiding at one end and tried to scare you, what would you do? I did that today –scared my friends. Gosh, it was so funny. XD They were screaming and like, "LARA! YOU STUPID GIRL! YOU ALMOST KILLED US!" And all I did was sit at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for them to come by –I didn't even say, "Boo!" or anything. It was so funny...

*points up* I guess that was my answer. Hahah. Well, if someone did that to _me_...I'll answer that when I pick a winner. :D

Sorry this was quite late. I had work again. Sorry I keep using work as an excuse –at least you get the chapters. ^^

**Next Update **(since some of you STILL frigging ask me. D:) **Is Friday. I'm going back to two updates a week because well, I only get to spend two hours on the computer each day now. Lo siento.**

~Lara


	48. Chapter 48:

**A/N. **Oh my... oh my God (this is used in a good way)...

We've gotten over 100 reviews within SIX DAYS (but there's more now :3). That's like...almost 17 reviews a day. (Might've miscalculated but ehh.) Friggin' Puck. That's amazing. 0.0 I knew this story would get at least a few readers, but 600...I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH.

I don't know how I can express how much you've all made me happy. Seriously -the love is overwhelming. Thank you. So much. I say this every time we hit a hundred, but take this to heart: Thank you so much for supporting this story and you're really amazing. FTFT thanks you for giving it the chance to grow, ya know. ^^

I feel guilty though. I know you guys want a lot of updates each week, but I hope you know, the faster the updates, the quicker this'll finish. And the sequel's not coming out for a few weeks or so (I swear, I will not abandon it like I did so with THFAR's sequel). That's why I'm spacing it out to two. Updates a week -one at the beginning, and one at the end.

You know, I had this rant all ready for the complainers and spoiled reviewers, but I decided that I might come off as really mean, so I'm going to put the past behind me. Also, this is a special chapter and I don't want my rant to dampen the mood. Of course, if you'd like to hear it, I'll give you a copy of it in a PM or something. ^^

I need to give SweetShireen a hug. We were PM-ing each other Wednesday night and we were saying good night and she said, "Sleep tight! Don't let the gang members bite!" I started laughing then and there. I thought that was pretty funny. XD

Oh, I'm in such a better mood just by thinking of this chapter. XD Yay for Daphne and MSeed fluff!

Bahy zee way, zee zixhundreth revieuwer ez ANannyMouze. Ye-hayz! Congratz, Jozh Huterzon's Fotur Wife! XD That was my try at a sterotypical French accent. Jk. I felt like saying my Zs. ^^

Oh, and happy March to you all! I get ITBS tests for two weeks! YAAAY! *sarcasm*

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 48: I'm About to Tell You...<strong>

The waiter led us to what seemed to be the furthest room from the entrance. When we arrived at a table, I was slightly disappointed. I wanted to eat at the hibachi. Sage sat down and gestured for me to take the chair next to him, but before I could my mom sat down, leaving me to sit next to Mr. Firay. My mom smiled pleasantly at me while Sage frowned.

"Can I start you off with something to drink?" our waiter asked.

"Coke," Mr. Firay and I responded at the same time. I looked at him out of the corner of my eye and saw him smirking at me. Immediately I looked away, at Sage.

"I'll have a Sprite," he told the waiter.

"And a coffee for me," my mom added when the waiter turned to her.

He nodded, scribbling down our drinks. "I'll be back in a few minutes with your drinks."

"Why aren't we eating at the hibachi?" I asked my mom when the waiter was gone.

"Too much commotion," my mom responded with a shrug. "Next time we'll eat there."

"I want to come next time too," Sage added. "I've never eaten at hibachi before."

I looked at him in surprise. "Really?"

Sage nodded. "This is my first time coming to the Osaka too."

"You'll love it."

"I hope so."

"What about you, Matt? Have you been here before?" my mom asked, turning to face him. I kept my head straight, focusing on Sage so I wouldn't look at Mr. Firay.

"It's my favorite restaurant," Mr. Firay told my mom, emphasizing the word "favorite".

"Daphne's too!"

"What a coincidence," Mr. Firay responded in an amused tone.

Suddenly I felt Mr. Firay's leg press against mine and I nearly jumped. I broke my focus on Sage and turned to Mr. Firay, who didn't seem to notice our contact. He was smiling politely at my mom, oblivious to my questioning gaze and our touching legs. Surprisingly, I felt a bit disappointed that our contact was accidental. I didn't move my leg away either.

"Daphne," Sage started, gaining my attention again. "I can't get over how mature you look tonight. "You look so… ravishing," he said with a grin.

A blush made its way onto my face at his words, even though I knew he was just saying it to tease Mr. Firay. "Thank you, Sage."

"Pretty words for the pretty lady."

"Does someone have a crush?" my mom hinted, nudging Sage in the shoulder.

Sage gave her a cheeky grin. "Maybe."

I almost laughed at my mom's surprised expression. She glanced at me with wide eyes, inconspicuously nodding her head towards Sage. I shrugged my shoulders at her, stealing a quick, amused look at Sage. He looked like he was about to laugh. I couldn't help but crack a smile at him, making my mom give me an even more bewildered look. I probably should have told her about Sage's antics…

Mr. Firay cleared his throat and I suddenly felt his leg be pulled away from mine. Immediately where our legs had been touching felt cold and I frowned. Without realizing it, I turned to frown at him for pulling away. He looked annoyed.

"You know what?" Mr. Firay started, turning to look at my mom. "We don't have menus. I think they might have forgotten we need them. Sage, could you go get some?"

Sage raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't know where to go. It's my first time here, remember?" He threw me a meaningful look.

"I'll—"

"I'll come with you," my mom told Sage, smiling at him. "I have to use the bathroom anyway, so if you don't mind waiting…"

A flicker of disappointment passed on Sage's face but he quickly regained his cheerful look and nodded at my mom. "I don't mind at all! Let's go."

"We'll be right back," my mom said to Mr. Firay and myself, pushing herself off her chair.

Mr. Firay raised a hand. "Take your time."

My mom smiled at him before gesturing for Sage to follow her out of our room and into the hall. Sage threw me a sheepish look before disappearing completely. I didn't have time to return it with my panicked one. Now nervous, I began to drum my fingers on the table to distract myself. Something told me Mr. Firay was staring at me, but I did my best to ignore him.

However I couldn't ignore him when I suddenly felt his hand over mine.

"That drumming is irritating," he told me, closing his hand on mine so that I couldn't tap anymore.

"Sorry," I murmured, trying to pull my hand away from his. He didn't let go.

"Look at me, Daphne."

I kept my head straightforward, doing my best to ignore how much I did want to look at him. After a moment I heard him sigh in irritation and he let go of my hand.

"Fine. Do what you want."

Now I felt guilty. I finally turned to look at him and caught him frowning at me. His penetrating, blue eyes pierced into mine and for a second I forgot how to breathe. Were his eyes always this beautiful? Or was it because I had been refusing to look into them all this time and had forgotten?

"Tell me, Daphne," Mr. Firay started quietly, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Was the whole reason of inviting me here to make me witness you and Sage's flirting all night?"

I shook my head immediately. "No. It was a thank you—"

"A card would have worked just as well. Or some baked goods," Mr. Firay snapped. "Tell me what I did."

I looked at him in surprised. "What?"

"Tell me what I did to make you upset with me, and I'll apologize," Mr. Firay insisted, his expression turning imploring.

"You didn't do anything!"

"Then why are you…?" Mr. Firay trailed off, looking irritated.

"Why am I what?" I responded, raising an eyebrow. "I didn't realize I was doing anything to annoy you."

Mr. Firay sighed, running a hand through his untidy hair. "Never mind. You're not doing anything."

Now I was really confused. "Then why…?" Oh. A small smirk spread onto my lips as I realized what was making him irritated. So Sage's plan was working?

Mr. Firay caught my expression and he looked at me warily. "What are you thinking?"

"Oh, nothing. Just… 'If you're jealous, just say it'," I quoted him, my smirk growing a little wider.

Mr. Firay didn't look the least bit phased by my comment. In fact, he looked amused. My smirk slowly faded and was replaced by a frown. I had expected at least some sort of reaction from him. Some denial or something. Mr. Firay then smirked at my reaction.

"Why do you look so disappointed?" he asked.

"I'm not," I lied.

"You can't lie to me."

"I'm not," I stated stubbornly.

Mr. Firay laughed. "I can honestly say I'm not jealous of Sage right now."

"Then why do you look so annoyed?"

"Because, as I just said, he's complementing you to make me jealous," Mr. Firay repeated, furrowing his eyebrows. "I'm annoyed because I think you truly deserve every compliment he's giving you."

My eyes widened slightly as my face immediately grew hot. I turned away from Mr. Firay, unable to look him properly in the eye. I didn't know how to react when Mr. Firay complimented me so directly like that. It was so out of character and it always caught me off-guard.

"Do you remember what I said the other night?"

At once my attention snapped back to Mr. Firay. He was staring at me with a serious expression. I opened my mouth to answer honestly, but Sage's face popped into my head and I closed it. Mr. Firay was going to try and get me to re-confess, I could tell. And I knew I probably would if I couldn't get it out of him first soon. I eventually shook my head. "No, what night?"

"The other night," Mr. Firay responded. "When you accidentally told me something you shouldn't have?"

The night when I'd accidentally confessed to him. My blush gave me away and I knew I couldn't deny it now. "Oh, yeah…"

"And do you remember what I said?"

To re-confess when I was older. "Yes…"

"And do you know what day it is?" Mr. Firay continued, a smirk growing on his face.

"Yeah," I murmured, my eyes now downcast so I wouldn't see his face.

"Well, I've got something to say," he told me in a rather alluring tone, and I wondered briefly if he had meant to say it like that.

"I-is that so," I stuttered, trying to keep my voice steady. He had something to say? Was he serious? Was Sage's plan working? I had to remember to give him the biggest thank-you hug known to man.

"Yeah, want to hear it?"

My mouth was dry now, and took me a few seconds to be able to respond. "Yes."

Mr. Firay chuckled slightly and I realized how close he was to me. My breath caught when I felt his breath against my ear for the second time this evening. For a full minute I sat completely still, feeling Mr. Firay's breath against my ear as he breathed. It took all of my will not to turn my head and kiss him. Finally, Mr. Firay spoke.

"Happy birthday."

Now I turned to face him. Our noses touched due to our proximity, and I quickly jerked back from the contact. Mr. Firay chuckle once again and leaned back in his seat as I blushed anew. Happy birthday? That's what he had to say? Happy birthday? Not "I love you"?

Mr. Firay watched me with amused eyes as I debated what I should do next. My first instinct was to punch him. I really, really wanted to punch him. After I punched him, I wanted to tell him how much I loved him. But that was out of the question. There was no way I was going to confess to him first! Not after that. I knew he was teasing me to get a reaction out of me, and I wasn't going let him have the satisfaction of giving it to him.

"Thank you," I finally responded, pulling my expression into an innocent smile. "It's nice to be finally considered an adult."

"You're welcome," Mr. Firay responded, now looking a little miffed. "You know, Daphne, I think you're hanging out with Sage too much."

Before I could ask him what he meant by that I heard my mom's voice. Immediately I turned away from Mr. Firay and grabbed my glass of water, taking a sip. As my mom and Sage entered the room, I felt Mr. Firay's leg against mine again. When I glanced at him from the corner of my eye, he smirked.

"Sorry it took so long," my mom apologized, taking her seat again. "It suddenly got really crowded in here."

"But I brought back menus," Sage told us and gave us each one of said items. "Anything interesting happen while we were gone?"

"Nope," Mr. Firay and I responded casually, simultaneously.

Sage raised an eyebrow, but said no more. I opened my menu and scanned the food choices quickly, already knowing what I was going to get. As they say, like mother, like daughter. My mom loved steak, and so did I.

The waiter eventually came back to us with our drinks with an apology for the wait. As he placed down one of the cups of coke, Mr. Firay and I both reached for it and he ended up closing his hand on mine rather than the cup. I quickly retracted my hand, looking down so no one would notice the rogue blush now on my face. When our drinks were settled our waiter took our order. Sage was the odd ball out, ordering chicken while the rest of our ordered steak –though Mr. Firay ordered some miso soup as an appetizer. I couldn't help but wonder if Mr. Firay was ordering his meal exactly like mine on purpose. Not many people replaced their vegetables with a second helping of mashed potatoes.

My mom grinned as the waiter walked away. "Wow, Mustardseed, you are just like Daphne."

"Is that so?"

My mom nodded. "Not many people order double mashed potatoes."

"I do love potatoes," Mr. Firay responded and I quickly shot a glance at him and saw him grinning.

"So does Daphne!"

"Is that so?"

"Yeah, she literally likes every kind of potato."

I grimaced. "Mom…" Were they really going to talk about potatoes?

"I like every kind of potato too," Mr. Firay told my mom. "Canned, mashed, baked, sweet… you name it."

"Daphne too! You two are meant for each other."

"Mom!" I cried, sending her a warning glare.

"What? It's true though," she protested with a frown.

Mr. Firay chuckled beside me and I resisted the urge to look at him. Sage was laughing to himself across the table. I narrowed my eyes pointedly at him and he sobered up, giving me a half-smile.

"Veronica, you get along well with Matt. How long have you two known each other?"

My mom turned to Sage, her face blank in thought for a moment. "Almost 27 years, I think."

I stared at my mom in surprise. "What?" I turned to Mr. Firay, who didn't look shocked at all. "That long?"

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow. "Daphne, she was helping Everafters before you were born…"

"And?" I asked, not really catching on.

"Didn't your mom ever tell you she used to babysit Puck and me when we were small?"

This information gave me a shock. My mom babysat fairies? Had she ever told me that? It probably wasn't significant enough to remember. It was kind of entertaining to think that my mom gave Puck baths and dressed Mr. Firay up when they were little, and that the two had no idea they would end up where they were today.

Mom grinned. "I remember that! You and Puck were physically seven and ten at that time –you two were so cute."

"Oh, so you know about Everafters? I guess I should've guessed from your last name." Sage said with a laugh.

Mom smiled at him. "Yep –descendants of the Brothers Grimm. Though, I don't think you're related to any fairy-tales at all. Mustardseed just told you all of this, right?"

"Yeah. But it's shocking –you'd think the next time your family and Matt would meet would be in Ferryport –that's the town you used to live in, right? What a coincidence that Daphne and Matt ended up as student and teacher," Sage commented in surprise.

"I know, right?" I responded, shifting in my seat. My leg lost contact with Mr. Firay's and after a split second of hesitation I boldly pressed it back against his. Even though it was only a small contact, it made me giddy.

"You two meeting here was like fate, huh?"

I frowned at Sage. He and Ariana would get along great.

Mr. Firay laughed quietly from beside me. "Perhaps."

My mom smiled at me. One of those smiles that give you the creeps. One of those smiles that make you think that the person smiling has ulterior motives for doing something, and they are working. Creeped out, I turned my attention to a group of people now entering our room. My eyes widened when I realized one of the members of the group was Daniel from my biology class. I quickly turned to Mr. Firay, my eyes wide in horror.

"What's…" he began to ask but trailed off as he looked behind me. Immediately he turned his head towards the wall. "Shit," he muttered.

"What's wrong?" my mom asked, turning to look at the group of people.

"Daniel. A kid from my class," I told my mom quietly, putting my hair over the side of my face just in case he decided to look over here.

My mom looked surprised. "Are you serious?"

"Completely."

"This is not good," my mom responded. "We should probably go, just in case…"

"Mom, I don't want to waste your reservations," I told her quickly. "If I just leave, it will be okay."

"It's your birthday though!"

"I'll go," Mr. Firay interjected. "I'll go wait in the car or something while you three eat."

"No!"

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow at me. "What other choice do we have? We can't let him see us together, Daphne."

"I know," I responded in dismay. "But being out there alone…"

"Daphne, why don't you and Matt go out there for now, and Sage and I will tell the waiter to make our orders to go," my mom suggested. "We can all eat at our house instead."

"Uh…"

"I think that sounds like a good idea," Sage interjected before I could agree or disagree. "It'd be bad if Daniel saw you two."

"Daphne, you go first," Mr. Firay ordered, still looking at the wall. "Try to get by without being seen."

"But—"

"Go," Mr. Firay ordered.

A small scowl appeared on my face. Mr. Firay and I alone again tonight? The thought made my heart pound. I didn't want to re-confess, but if Mr. Firay did anything that threw me off again, I didn't know what I would say. It seemed like a dangerous thing for him and I to be alone. I sighed, pushing myself out of my chair.

"I'm going."

"We'll be out when the food's ready," my mom assured me, but something about her look made me think she was implying something else.

Turning towards the door, I focused my attention on the floor and kept my head down so I wouldn't be recognized. Of course though, nothing could work out for me. Before I reached the door, someone bumped into me and I snapped my head up instantly as I tottered on my foot, trying not to fall. Daniel was looking down at me in surprise, his arm wrapping around my waist to steady me.

"Daphne?" he asked in surprise.

Shoot. "Hi, Daniel."

His eyes left my face and traveled down my body quickly. I slowly removed his arm from around my waist as he checked me out.

"You look really good," he complimented. "Red is your color. Who did you come with tonight?"

"Thank you, and my mom and a few friends…"

Daniel eyes shot over towards the table where Sage, my mom, and Mr. Firay sat. I held my breath as his eyes narrowed slightly, then relaxed when they returned to me. He hadn't noticed Mr. Firay.

"Sounds fun."

"Yeah, but I'm leaving now," I told him. "So I'll see you tomorrow…"

"Okay, bye, Daphne."

I exited the room before he thought of something else to say. Hopefully Mr. Firay would be able to leave the room without being detected. As I made my out of the restaurant I caught a few people staring at me and I blushed. I was never going to wear this dress in public again.

Cold air bit at my exposed skin as I stepped outside. I shuddered, walking towards the car and leaning against the hood while waiting for Mr. Firay. It was dark, and standing outside by myself made me feel nervous. Not that I could blame myself. Anyone who had gangsters after them, who wanted to kidnap them, wouldn't feel safe alone at night. Anywhere.

When Mr. Firay stepped out of the restaurant all my worries disappeared. A relieved smile spread across my face as he started walking towards me. He gave me a sheepish grin as he grew closer. I raised an eyebrow.

"I forgot the car keys," he admitted before I had the chance to ask him any questions.

"Oh." Well that sucked. It was like, forty degrees out here.

"Come here," Mr. Firay ordered, gesturing for me to follow him with his hand. "We'll see if my car is unlocked."

I followed him without hesitation as he started towards the dark parking lot behind the restaurant. As we went further away from the lights of the restaurant I moved closer to Mr. Firay until I was practically hiding behind him. The parking lot had no lights, so the only light came from the moon. I began to grow apprehensive, my eyes flickering all around me.

Mr. Firay suddenly stopped and I bumped into him, jumping from the sudden contact. A startled gasp escaped my lips and I took a step back away from him. "Sorry, you scared me."

Mr. Firay gave me a confused look. "How? I was in front of you the whole time."

"Um, I'm just being paranoid," I admitted quietly.

Mr. Firay didn't respond, but I felt him envelop my hand with his. I blushed, but didn't attempt to pull away. Without any words he continued to lead me through the parking lot towards his car. When we arrived he stopped, turning to look at me. His expression was a guilty one.

"Daphne, I'm sorry," he apologized.

I blinked at him. "For what?"

"The whole gang situation," he told me, a hard edge to his tone. "I hate the fact that you have to be scared of walking through a parking lot at night."

"You've apologized for that enough, you don't have to again," I told him. "Besides, like I've said before, it's just as much my fault as it is yours."

Mr. Firay sighed. "You know Daphne, you should stop being so nice to me."

"Why?"

"Because I'm hardly that nice to you," Mr. Firay told me, a smirk now on his face.

"You're nice enough," I murmured, looking away from him. "If you were any nicer, I'd be worried."

He laughed. "Still, don't you want to be angry with me?"

"For what?"

"You know, for telling you to re-confess."

My eyes widened slightly in shock and I quickly turned back to him. His eyes were filled with amusement as he watched me. How could be bring that up so easily? He was definitely trying to elicit some kind of reaction from me.

"I've been thinking that saying that to you was pretty unfair of me," Mr. Firay continued, lightly tugging on my arm to bring me closer to him. "It must have been embarrassing enough to admit your feelings by accident."

I blushed now, mostly due to his words, but also due to our closeness. "I…"

"However I did say that, and you've waited. And now today's your birthday," Mr. Firay started again, now speaking in a low and alluring voice. "Is there something you want to say?"

"No," I responded, my voice equally as quiet as his.

"Not at all?"

"No," I repeated stubbornly.

Mr. Firay hummed quietly, yanking me to him again, this time making our bodies collide. I gasped in surprise as he twirled me around and pressed me against the side of his car. Both his hands were pinning my hands to the edge of his car and he brought his head down so we were face-to-face.

"Are you absolutely sure you don't want to say anything?"

I shook my head determinedly. Now was the time to stay bold. If I could keep myself from re-confessing right now, Mr. Firay would. He was obviously expecting me to confess again— he wanted me to re-confess. That was why he was teasing me. I swallowed nervously as his eyes pierced into mine. Soon we were in some sort of staring contest.

Part of me toyed with the idea that the only reason Mr. Firay wouldn't confess was because of his ego. Which was probably true, but I would never say that to him. Another reason was because Mr. Firay wanted to see me embarrass myself by confessing to him again. That one was the more likely reason.

After what felt like a million years Mr. Firay pulled away from me, letting my hands go. "Gee Daphne, if you're this stubborn you'll never get a boyfriend," Mr. Firay commented in amusement.

That set me off. I narrowed my eyes at Mr. Firay, a scowl slipping onto my face. "Stubborn? I'm the one who's stubborn? I'm not the one that told the girl that confessed her love to him to re-confess again later just because she wasn't a legal adult! I mean really, who does that? Don't you think I was embarrassed enough that night? What makes you think that I want to re-confess? Maybe I got over you during this last week!"

"Daphne."

"Maybe if you'd actually man up and deflate some of your ego you'd realize it's unfair to make me re-confess again. And all tonight you've been trying to push me to do it. Even in school! You have to _confess_ that you have a _confession_ to make. You really lay it on thick don't you?"

"Daphne, I—"

"You know it was Sage's idea to make me try to make you confess first. That's why I've been trying to make you jealous all night. But no, you have to be all cool and composed and handsome as always!"

"Handsome?" Mr. Firay repeated, raising an eyebrow.

I stared at him in annoyance, throwing my hands up in the air. "Mr. Firay! Ugh! Just… Never mind!"

Mr. Firay chuckled and I pushed away from his car, intending to go back into the restaurant. For some reason my eyes were beginning to burn and soon I felt them become moist. Mr. Firay was stupid. Sage was stupid too for coming up with that stupid plan which made me do stupid things and—

My thoughts were abruptly cut off when I felt a hand encase my upper arm and pull me backwards. I let out a cry of surprise as I was pulled back to Mr. Firay. Too embarrassed to look at him, I kept my attention focused on his black dress shoes. The moon made them shine.

"Daphne, look at me."

I ignored him, keeping my eyes locked on his shoe. Suddenly his hand was at my chin, forcing me to look up at him. His blue eyes pierced into mine again, this time the usual amusement glint was replaced with something else. Something I didn't recognize.

"You know the phrase actions speak louder than words?" Mr. Firay asked me.

I nodded my head.

Mr. Firay brought his head down closer to mine, stopping a few inches away. "Want to hear something?"

"Yes," I whispered, my heart pounding so hard I thought it would burst out of my chest.

Mr. Firay moved closer again, his lips not even a centimeter away from mine now. "Good, because I'm about to tell you how much I love you." With each word his lips just gently brushed against mine, and his breath caressed them.

My head spun already, just by hearing those words. I closed my eyes now, waiting expectantly. As soon as I felt the gentle touch of Mr. Firay's against mine I jumped.

Not because of the feeling, but because of someone shouting my name, then Mr. Firay's. Mr. Firay pulled away and let out a frustrated groan. My face grew so hot I thought it was going to catch on fire as I stepped away from Mr. Firay. I looked to see where the shouting was coming from and saw the silhouettes of my mom and Sage by the front of the parking lot.

For people who wanted to help Mr. Firay and I get together, they sure couldn't have picked a worse timing to look for us. We hadn't even got to kiss! Well, technically we did, I thought, but that was the way I kissed my mom, not how I wanted to kiss Mr. Firay!

"I'm going to kill him," Mr. Firay muttered threateningly.

"We're… we're over here!" I called back, surprised at how shaky my voice sounded.

Mr. Firay let out a deep sigh as Sage and my mom began to move towards us. "I'll have to prove it to you later."

"Prove…?"

"How much I love you," Mr. Firay told me, his eyes piercing into mine. "That wasn't even a fraction of my feelings. I'm going to make you drunk off my love."

I blushed from his unequivocal tone and words. I swallowed nervously, encouraging myself to speak. "Promise?" I finally managed to force out.

Mr. Firay looked surprised for a moment, but then a smirk spread across his features. "Promise."

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **I'm a little evil pixie; aren't I? XD But hey -you can't get a confession and a kiss in one chapter -let you be reminded that they're not even dating yet. And it was pretty much a kiss so you can't get mad at me.

**THIS IS FOR THE **_**COMPLAINING**_** ANONYMOUS REVIEWERS:**Um, I'm still getting a few Complaints -Not Reviews- on my updates. (I know I said I wouldn't 'rant', but this is ridiculous.) So, let's see if I can put it this way:

_I Am Not A Robot. I can't spit out a chapter every time someone begs for it. And I'm changing the schedule to two days a week for YOUR benefit: Do you want this story to last a little longer than two weeks? I'm sure you'd like a month more or so of updates, right? I don't want this story to end either, but the end is nearing! So please, Respect My Wishes. I don't mind nice complaints, but the outright rude ones -no. Seriously. If you want really great quality chapters (or close), then you can wait. If you want a sloppy, filled with mistakes story, go somewhere else. I'm really saying this in the nicest way I can because, frankly, I'm tired. I'm stressed. I have a life outside FF. My family says I'm not spending time with them anymore. I want to wake up energized, relaxed, with my family and balancing FF and life. Thank you if you're actually understanding this. End of small rant._

*huffs* Now that the tension is out of the way...by the way, that wasn't even the rant I had planned out. The real one is much, much longer.

Um...well, I feel still guilty, so since Sunday marks the start of the week, I'll update then, so you only will have to wait a day and a few hours for the next chapter. Sound okay? Thanks.

And to those who ask: **Why would I tell you what school I go to?**O.o? This is the Internet for goodness sake! How do I know that there aren't any creep-offenders reading and trying to find information to get me? So…I live in Russia at Ferryport Landing High School and I go to school with magical pixies and Josh Hutcherson, Chace Crawford, and Alex Pettyfer clones.

Hopefully you'll comment on the chapter today -I'm really excited to see what you guys think of the confession -I kept re-doing it for hours because it didn't seem good. Heck, it still doesn't seem so amazing. Oh well.

Thanks to everyone for reading! But now, I have to reply to many many many reviews from previous chapters…oh whatever. I'll do it tomorrow. I want my River King (it's a Nintendo game –I'm so addicted) nooow. ...This chapter was +6100 words. Wow. By the way, the month of February had about 1,297 (or maybe 1,197) visitors. I THANK YOU SOOO MUCCH! Really. :D You have made me so happy.

Until Sunday!  
>-Lara<p> 


	49. Chapter 49:

**EDIT: **Hi, guys! I just want you to know that I did not forget to update yesterday -FF wouldn't let me into my Document Manager AT ALL. D: So I couldn't even copy and paste the chapter into one of the files. FF just kept making me log in and again and again -it was annoying. So, yeah. I didn't forget this time. :D Anyways, you should read the chapter now -or at least read the A/N. Thank You message.

**A/N.**I want to start off with a thank you to all supporting friends -really, when I'm feeling gloomy, you're the Sage to my...something. Lol. I don't know. But you guys cheer me up like Sage does for Daphne (I should've just went with that :3). Thanks. And -I'm really surprised -you were supportive enough to say that I could take a break for TWO weeks (one person said that, so I thank you for your generosity. :D). I was thinking about it, but I decided to make all of us happy, I'm just going to stay with two updates a week so I'm not rushed or am I denying myself some writing time. :) Sound good? Hope so.

Your reviews made me grin. I'm glad you guys liked how last chapter turned out and I know the "Drunk off my love." thing was weird, but I thought it was really funny in a cheesy way. ...AH! I FORGOT PUCK AND MSEED WERE 11! Sorry, sorry, sorry. I seriously need to reread the series...

Guys, I'm SOO addicted. You know how I used to be an addict to Super Mario Bros.? Now it's River King! It's this fishing game with anime characters with anime names (but you're character is a guy :3) and they have "monsters" who are really just adorable! In the game, my sister, Yunna, is in a deep sleep and the only way to wake her is with the scale of a River King. So I go on an adventure and fish and stuff and meet monsters and raise baby monsters and...I'm almost done with the game. ^^ I had lost it (the game and Nintendo) 6 months ago, and found it last Saturday. XD I love the monsters...they're so cute.

Okay, so I wrote that *points up* maybe Wednesday, and now I finished the game. :D It was so much fun. I caught the River King and the Yunna girl woke up, and it was all YAAAY! _By the way, _people asked for the gang to come back -that's a first, so I was kinda shocked you wanted some more stress for MSeed and Daphne ;D- they'll come back soon, don't worry. The chapters before the dinner were kind of tension-y, so I wanted to sit back for awhile, just because people were like ripping their hair out whenever Bryant was mentioned (cue hair ripping). :3

One more thing to add to this long A/Ns (heck, most are really long anyways): Basil and Henry are leaving again. :3 They're mentioned in this chapter, but not actually in it. They're leaving just because I want to add some Daphne and MSeed alone time in future chapters, and they can't exactly be alone if Henry is stalking them and Basil screaming whenever they show PDA. ;DDD

I hope you enjoy this..._Dapherific _chapter (;;DDD Kudos to that reviewer that I PM-ed about 12 hours ago!)

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 49: Paranoia<strong>

"Maybe you ate some bad steak." My mom gave me a worried look as she stood over my bed. She pressed her hand to my forehead and frowned. "You don't have a fever…"

I shook my head. "No, I don't think I do. I just have a stomachache… and cramps," I made up quickly.

Immediately my mom smiled with realization. "Ah. I understand completely. I'll call the school and let them know you'll be absent today then."

"Thank you."

"No problem, honey," my mom responded with a smile. "Rest up though. I'm sure Wendell and Ariana will be very disappointed if you can't go to the festival tonight."

"Oh crap! I forgot about that," I responded with a frown. "Yeah, I'll rest up then…"

My mom chuckled. "Okay. Make sure you eat something too. Oh, and Dad will pick Basil up after school today. I've got to go to work now, so have a good day."

"You be careful, too," I said as she headed out of my room. "See you later."

"Bye."

As soon as she closed my bedroom door I fell back on my bed and pulled the covers over my head, feeling my face heat up. I was such a chicken! Eventually I'd have to go to school and face Mr. Firay in class. But after last night, how could I act the same in class? To act as if he was only my teacher and nothing more? Could I do it? Surely it wouldn't be any different than before… except now I knew he thought of me as more than a student.

Erg. Why did Mr. Firay have to be my teacher?

And why did I wait to have these feelings until now? When we were already in love with each other? I could have gotten used to them if I had them from the beginning! What if he looked at me in class? Obviously I was going to blush since I had a horrid habit of doing so.

A small groan erupted from me as I pressed my comforter harder into my face. Mr. Firay and I didn't even have a chance to talk about what happened last night because my mom and Sage never left us alone again. I hadn't even looked at him after that— I was too embarrassed. I shook my head violently, trying to dismiss my thoughts. I needed more sleep, I could think about this later.

My phone ringing woke me up. It was a muffled sound I could barely hear. I glanced at my side table, wondering why my ring tone was so quiet. Then I remembered my phone was in the living room where I accidentally left it last night after eating. Pushing myself out of the warmth of my bed, I stomped down the hall way and down the stairs to where my phone was.

"Hello?" I mumbled sleepily, not bothering to check the caller I.D.

"Daphne! It's my first day back in school and you're not here?" Wendell demanded at once.

I pulled the phone away from my ear in surprise. "Ow, you don't need to yell."

"I'm not!"

"Sure."

Wendell sighed. "Why aren't you in school?

"Umm," I hesitated, feeling my face heat up again. "You know… Girl problems."

"Say no more," Wendell responded quickly.

I laughed. "Okay."

"Are you still going to the festival?"

"Yup."

"Okay, just making sure. Are you getting a ride, or should I pick you up?"

I shrugged, but then remembered he couldn't see me. "I don't know. I'll probably walk. The fair grounds aren't that far away and—"

"I'll pick you up," Wendell interjected before I could finish. "It's too dangerous for you to be walking alone at night."

I frowned slightly. Now he was starting to sound like Mr. Firay. And he didn't even know about the whole kidnap situation. "I can handle myself, Wendell."

"If they shoot you?"

"Wendell! Don't say things like that so easily! Who are you with?"

I could imagine Wendell rolling his eyes. "I'm by myself, outside. No one will overhear us."

"Still," I growled. "What time are you picking me up?"

"Seven," Wendell told me. "Be ready."

I nodded; once again forgetting Wendell couldn't seem me. "I will."

Suddenly I heard another voice that wasn't Wendell's on the other side of my phone. I thought he said he was alone! Wendell spoke to the person and after a minute of Wendell and the person arguing quietly, I heard a weird noise. Then a new person spoke.

"Daphne?"

My breath caught in my throat and my eyes widened. "Mr. Firay?"

"Yeah, it's me. Why aren't you in school today?"

Suddenly my palms felt widely and I looked around widely, not knowing what to say. I didn't want to lie to Mr. Firay, but there was no way I could tell the truth!

"I just don't feel well, but I've got to go now, bye!" I said in a rush before pulling the phone away and snapping my phone shut.

My heart was pounding as I stood stock-still, feeling embarrassed again. Why did I hang up so quickly? I hadn't even said goodbye to Wendell, who was the one who called me in the first place… Wait. How could Wendell have called? He didn't have his phone.

Flipping open my phone again, I meant to check my recent calls but my eyes widened surprise when they landed on my phone's background. Instead of Mr. Firay making a funny face like it was before, it was something else. Mr. Firay was still there, but now he was in a suit, and he was raising an eyebrow and holding up his phone. I could just barely make out the picture of myself making a funny face on his phone. My face heated up as I quickly hit the menu button. When had Mr. Firay got a chance to change my background?

My recent calls showed that Wendell had used Mr. Firay's phone to call me. I frowned, feeling bad for hanging up now. Clicking on his name, I started a text message and quickly wrote an apology for hanging up. I hit send and quickly stuffed my phone in my pocket.

Not even a minute later my phone buzzed in my pocket. After a brief moment of hesitation I pulled it open and read the text message from Mr. Firay.

_We need to talk._

I read his message over in my head a few times. For a moment I panicked, thinking something was wrong. But there couldn't be. I didn't do anything, nor did he. Anyway, he was right. We did need to talk… I hit the reply button and wrote out an agreement before tossing the phone onto the couch.

I could really use a long, warm shower.

Time passed as I curled up on my couch with a book when I was done showering. When my stomach started to rumble, I decided it was time to get something to eat. Going back downstairs, I passed the living room, glancing quickly at the couch where my phone still lay. I'd check it after I ate.

After a steaming bowl of chicken noodle soup I trudged to the couch and picked up my phone. One new text message. I opened it; already knowing it was from Mr. Firay.

_Are you going to the festival tonight? Maybe I'll see you._

My brows furrowed in confusion. Did I tell Mr. Firay I was going to the festival? I couldn't remember. When I clicked reply, I noticed that it was not Mr. Firay's number who sent the text message. It was Wendell's.

Instantly my heart beat increased and I gripped the phone harder. What did Bryant mean by that? Was he going to the festival too? Was he going to try something? Suddenly I felt sick. I collapsed onto the couch, staring dumbly at my phone. Should I tell someone? Or was Bryant just trying to mess with me?

After a few moments of indecision I finally snapped my phone shut. Bryant was just trying to play games. Why would he try something right after one of his followers was thrown in jail? It was too risky. If I didn't reply to his messages, he'd eventually figure out I wasn't going to play along. Smiling, I turned on the television. I had nothing to worry about… And yet, the worry was still there. It was a knot in my stomach, an increase of my pulse, a whispering voice in my head…

Seven o'clock really needed to come faster. I needed to have fun and take my mind of things.

Five knocks on my front door made me jump violently; dropping the book I had started up again to waste time after I finished getting myself ready for the festival. I quickly grabbed my bag and headed to the door, opening it to reveal Wendell grinning at me. He quickly pulled me into a hug and I laughed.

"Excited much?"

"Hey, you try sitting in a hospital for nearly three weeks. It's awful," Wendell retorted, nudging me in the side with his elbow. "Let's go. Ariana's already in the car."

Wendell started down my driveway as I quickly locked and shut my front door. Ariana grinned at me as I approached the car, waving from the back seat. I walked around to the other side of the car and climbed in the back with her as Wendell slid into the driver's seat.

"You're not sitting up front?" Wendell asked, looking at me through the rear-view. "Great. Now I feel like a chauffeur."

"Technically you are," Ariana pointed out.

Wendell rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Put your seat belts on."

I did as Wendell commanded and snapped my buckle. He pulled out of my drive way and onto the main road, heading towards the fair grounds. Ariana continued to grin at me as the three of us sat in silence in the car.

"What?" I finally asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Nothing," she responded, still grinning. "Nothing, nothing!"

I pursed my lips at her. "Obviously it's something, otherwise you wouldn't be grinning like an idiot."

Ariana laughed. "I'm just thinking. That's all."

"Oh, that's new," Wendell joked from the front. "I'm proud of you, Ari."

"Shut up, Wendell," Ariana said, rolling her eyes. "I'll have you know I'm smart."

"Really?"

"Smarter than a person who gets himself shot by gang members," Ariana snapped, a smug smirk appearing on her face. "You can't deny that."

Wendell and I quickly exchanged apprehensive looks. Unfortunately, Ariana caught it. Her smirk fell, and was replaced by a frown.

"There was a reason why Wendell was attacked, wasn't there?"

My eyes shot open, and so did Wendell's. Another look was passed between us, once again caught by Ariana, who narrowed her eyes. "Tell me," she demanded.

"_Dime_," I joked.

She didn't think it was funny.

"It's nothing," Wendell assured her, his eyes flicking to her for a split-second before returning to the road. "It was purely— Holy shit!"

Suddenly I was flung against the door and my head made contact with the hard, glass window. A small groan of pain escaped my lips as I pushed myself away from it. There was the blaring of a horn, the squeal of tires, and constant swearing from Wendell. It felt like we were spinning, but I didn't have the courage to look out the window to find out for sure.

"Wendell!" Ariana screamed, pushing forward in her seat. "Go forwards! Go forwards! _Vamos, vamos!_ Car!"

I turned to look at Ariana and my eyes flew wide when I realized there was a large, black truck heading straight for us. Wendell slammed on the gas pedal and I was jolted back in my seat, gasping in surprise. The truck missed us by inches. Ariana and I let out relieved sighs, but those were caught off when we were suddenly jerked forward and our seatbelts dug into our chest. I heard the engine cut off.

"What… the Puck happened?" I demanded, falling back against my seat. "Wendell?"

Wendell turned around in seat, looking worried. "Are you guys okay?"

"I'm okay," Ariana said shakily.

"What happened?" I repeated.

Wendell shook his head. "Some asshole switched lanes at the very last second, cutting me off… Hey! They're coming up behind us now. When did they get there?"

Wendell was looking behind me and I turned around to see a small, black car creeping up behind us. It was going slow, and looked like it was going to stop.

"Maybe they're going to apologize?" Ariana guessed.

"Doubt it."

The car grew closer and I squinted my eyes to try and make out the driver, but the windows were too dark. I turned back to Wendell, who was frowning slightly, his eyes narrowed at the car. When I turned back, I realized the car was now next to us, and stopped. The window stated to roll down and horror filled my veins when I realized who was in the car that nearly made us crash.

"Wendell," I whispered, unable to draw my eyes away from Bryant, who was smirking and gesturing for us to roll down the window.

Ariana leaned across me, attempting to reach for the window control button. "He wants us to open—"

"No!" I cried, quickly slapping her hand away. "Wendell, drive!"

"On it!" he responded, turning back around in his seat.

A smirk slipped onto Bryant's face as his attention went from me to Ariana. Ariana smiled at him. It took all my will not to shove Ariana away and flip off Bryant –even if it wasn't like me. Bryant really got on my nerves. Though, right now wasn't the time to make Ariana suspicious. But I had the feeling she was anyway.

There was a roar from the car's engine, and soon we were speeding away from Bryant's car. I turned around quickly to see if he was following us. Luckily, he wasn't. I breathed out a sigh of relief, slumping back into my seat.

"What's he doing here?" Wendell hissed, glancing at me through the mirror.

"Who's he?" Ariana asked.

"No one," I told her. "And I don't know!"

Ariana rolled her eyes. "He's obviously someone."

"Forget about him."

"Daphne."

"Ariana, please."

"Why are you keeping a secret from me?" She asked, pursing her lips at me and frowned.

I knew at once she was trying to play the guilt game. Not that I couldn't blame her. If she and Wendell were keeping a secret from me, I'd want to know too. But this was the kind of secret that could end up saving her life if something were to happen. Still, I did feel guilty about having to lie to her. She was my best friend…

"Okay," Wendell sighed from the front. "Since Daphne won't tell you, I will."

"Wendell!"

"Daphne, it's fine. Ariana should know."

"But…" I protested, trailing off with a frown.

Ariana turned to Wendell, looking curious. "Did you know that guy?"

Wendell nodded. "A while ago, he was following Daphne around."

What? I gave Wendell a confused look, but he ignored me. Ariana blinked at Wendell in confusion.

"Like a stalker?" she asked.

"Not like a stalker, a stalker," he told her. "And that's it. That's how we know him."

"Creepy," Ariana muttered, glancing at me. "How come you didn't tell me about your stalker? I could have helped."

"It was, um, not a big deal," I told her, shrugging. "Next time I can tell you."

Ariana laughed. "Hopefully there won't be a next time."

"Hopefully," I agreed, looking at Wendell once again.

Why was he lying so flat out to Ariana? Sure, it was better than telling the truth, but that lie was a bit much. I felt worse about lying to her now than before. But we couldn't tell her about the gangs! I was positive it'd put her in danger. Letting out a sigh, I shook my head. For now, I'd just stop thinking about it. Ariana bought the lie, so she'd be satisfied.

"Well, if he bothers you again, you can tell Mr. Firay," Ariana suggested, nudging me in the ribs. "Eh?"

I rolled my eyes at her. "Again with Mr. Firay?"

Ariana snorted. "Please, Daphne. I already know you're heels over head for him, and he's definitely got something for you. Don't try to tell me that something won't be going on."

"Don't be nosy," I scolded, feeling my face redden. "Nothing…" I trailed off, frowning slightly.

What was going on? Sure, I professed my love for him a week ago, and last night he made it obvious he loved me. But that was it. Nothing else had happened. I wasn't his girlfriend or anything like that.

"She's not being nosy, Daphne," Wendell commented, rolling his eyes. "She's being concerned."

I glanced at Ariana. To my surprise, she looked hurt by my comment.

"Ariana, I'm not trying to be mean..."

"I know," she responded with a sigh. "You don't have to tell me anything. I just thought you'd want a girl to talk to about, you know, things you wouldn't want to Wendell about. Things that were bothering you, or things you wanted to get off your chest. Mr. Firay is a teacher after all, so I'm sure there's some kind of trouble you're feeling. But like I said, you don't have to."

I smiled slightly. Leave it to Ariana to care about something she shouldn't have to. "Ariana, you're one of my best friends—"

"And as your best friend, I can wait until you're ready to tell me about you and Mr. Firay," she finished for me. "I'll stop prying."

"Ariana, it's fine—"

She held her hand up, silencing me. "Nope. Don't say anything. _No hablas._ I_ am_ being kind of nosy."

"But that's why we love you," Wendell interjected. "Your nosiness comes in handy sometimes."

Ariana grinned at him. "I hope so."

Wendell suddenly took a sharp right, once again sending me into the window. "Hey," I protested, pushing myself away. "That hurts…"

"Sorry," he apologized, sounding amused. "I almost missed the entrance to the fairgrounds."

I peered out the window and realized that we were indeed at the fairgrounds. The only thing I could see though was the back of a fun house, and the lights of various rides in the distance. A smile crept onto my face as I located the Ferris wheel. The very same one Mr. Firay and I had our first major conversation, even though now I knew he was lying the whole time…

"I can't wait to get some cotton candy," Ariana chirped excitedly, unbuckling her seatbelt in anticipation.

"I want a baked potato," Wendell and I commented at the same time. We exchanged looks and grins in the mirror quickly.

When Wendell finally found a place to park, we all piled out of the car and he locked it, shoving the keys into his pocket. Cool air nipped at my face as I stretched, pausing to run my sore forehead. Wendell and Ariana went ahead of me, laughing and talking in excited voices. Pulling my jacket tighter around me, I took a few steps towards them but stopped when my phone started vibrating in my pocket. I quickly pulled it out and flipped it open, clicking the new message.

_Oh, you finally made it. I didn't realize how much further ahead of you I got. Can't wait to talk to you in person!_

I froze, my eyes staring at the message on the cell phone screen. The name next to the message read "Wendell". Which meant Bryant. Which meant he could see me. Which meant he was close. Which meant I was in danger.

My head snapped up and I quickly spun in a circle, my eyes wide and wary. Where was he? Nothing appeared out of the ordinary. But then again, it was dark, so he could very easily be hidden. Instead of standing still like sitting target, I hurried towards Wendell and Ariana. The bright lights and crowds from the festival would keep me safe. Bryant wouldn't try anything while there were so many people around, would me?

For a split second I thought about texting Mr. Firay and telling him Bryant was here. That idea was out of the question when I realized he might call the police. That was the last thing I wanted him to do. What about Sage? No, he'd probably tell Mr. Firay anyway. I just had to be cautious, and never leave Wendell or Ariana.

"_Cuanto cuesta_?" I heard Ariana asking Wendell as I grew closer.

"Five dollars."

The feeling of being watched suddenly washed over me. Great, I thought dryly, now I was going to be paranoid all night. Stupid Bryant. He had to ruin all my fun. I finally caught up to Wendell and Ariana at the gate, and paid for my admission into the festival. I hooked my arm through Ariana's arm and Wendell's— a sure fire way that we wouldn't get separated.

"Where to first?" I asked cheerily, trying to get my mind off Bryant.

"Should we just walk around and see what there is?" Wendell suggested.

"Sounds good to me."

A familiar buzzing from my pocket made my heart leap into my chest. I debated on whether to ignore the new message or not, but curiosity got the best of me and I let go of Wendell to pull out my phone. What did Bryant want now?

_Don't make any plans for tomorrow. You and I are going to talk._

My eyes narrowed in confusion. What was Bryant talking about now? If he wanted to talk, wouldn't he just demand to do it tonight since he seemed to be here anywhere?

"Oh, so you text Mr. Firay now too?" Ariana asked me, making me jump in surprise. "And you're meeting tomorrow?"

I glanced at the top of the message and realized that it was indeed from Mr. Firay and not Bryant. Relief washed through me, and I didn't even feel embarrassed about the fact Ariana had read the text message, and Mr. Firay wanted to see me tomorrow.

"Oh shoot," Ariana suddenly muttered. "I'm prying…"

I laughed. "Ariana! Don't worry. It's fine. I'll tell you what's going on when I know exactly what's going on."

"So something could be going on?" Ariana and Wendell asked at the same time.

I gave Wendell a questioning look. "Why do you want to know?"

"I'm just curious about how things will turn out," he told me with a shrug. "Good for you."

Now I blushed. "It's not… It's…"

Ariana laughed, slinging an arm around my shoulder. "Daphne, you're too cute."

I sighed as a large crowd of people walked by us. Wendell grabbed my hand quickly so he wouldn't be separated. There were a lot of people out tonight, which made me feel much more safer. I could easily lose Bryant in the gaggles of people easily if I had to, or if I screamed someone would hear me…

But nothing is going to happen, I told myself firmly.

Right?

Right.

My phone vibrated again, and I rolled my eyes.

"You're popular tonight," Ariana commented.

"Guess so."

I quickly typed an "okay" to Mr. Firay and closed his message before going to the next one. My heart skipped a beat when I realized it was from Bryant. He wouldn't leave me alone, would he?

_If you think you can lose me in the crowds, you're wrong. I can still see you._

I nearly dropped my phone.

It was going to be one, long, paranoid night.

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **:D I lied. I brought Bryant back (oooh, tongue twister!) in this chapter. And I know –GRR! LARA! WHERE'S MR. FIRAY? I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I know his voice through the phone wasn't enough. He'll come back in some chapter….probably next. :D Or not. I don't have this all planned out, really. I have most, but it's usually different from what I post.

*coughs* Anyways, I will reply to all anon. and signed in reviews soon. There's so many, and a lot are long…but I will reply –the ones that actually hold opinions and questions I answer. So, don't think I skipped your review or anything. :D

I think that's it. If I have anything else, it'll probably show up below. :D

…OHHH! I JUST THOUGHT OF SOMETHING! Besides the next update being on **Friday, **I was scrolling through my YouTube favorites on my phone, and this anime popped up. It's called Kaichou wa Maid Sama –which I'm sure I've talked about before…The girl is dark haired and the guy is blonde haired. Does that remind you of two certain people that kissed last chapter? I thought that was funny. And what IS funny is that the girl's first kiss is had as a senior, too. XDD The only difference is the guy is not a teacher, and is half British and half Japanese. :D Oh, and the girl has a younger sister. So. :3 Yeah.

'Til Friday! Oh! And any errors –please review about them. :D I like improving this story to make it better.

~Lara


	50. Chapter 50:

**A/N. **I'M SO SORRY SORRY SORRY SORRY. I came home at like four because Hannah had a dentist appointment, then we drove around Coconut Point (it's an outlet mall kinda thing), then we went home, and I fell asleep, then I ate dinner and now I'm here. But, at least I got it on the site before Saturday, right? Anyways, I'm going to keep this A/N somewhat short –sorry, no review replies again to anons. I have –still- like 20 reviews to reply to because I feel the need to in my inbox, but I'm lazy. This was a lazy week. But anyways… :D Oh, and I realize I never picked a winner to the "What would you do if someone tried scaring you?" or something. Can't remember –that was chapters ago.

"Question of the Whatever: I would probably scream and get into a ninja pose, which is totally natural for me."

Short, simple, and funny. Congrats, booksonclouds!

Now….Chapter…YAYYY. And you guys are in for a surprise –well, at least I think you'll find it surprising –most of you. Oh, and Curlscat, this isn't the prank one if you're thinking so.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 50: Text Messages<strong>

"What should we do now?"

Wendell and I shrugged simultaneously. The sky was finally beginning to darken, and the lights from all the rides were on, creating an amazing sight. Ariana, Wendell, and I had walked around the whole festival twice already. We had hit a few of the rides as well. Now we were taking a break and eating— well, at least I was.

The hot baked potato in my hands warmed them, which was a nice break from the chilly air that had been nipping at them. It was time to start wearing gloves at night. Wendell and Ariana were sitting across from me, watching me eat. Or at least Wendell was. Ariana's eyes were everywhere, wide and excited.

"I want to go on that," Ariana stated, pointing her finger at a ride that looked like the zipper of a jacket.

"Me too," Wendell commented, looking up at it with a grin. "How about you Daphne?"

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you kidding me? I don't want to die."

Wendell and Ariana laughed, making my face heat up.

"Daphne, you're scared to go on every ride that leaves the ground," Wendell commented, rolling his eyes. "Live a little."

"I am," I told him, "by not going on that ride." Remembering the 'carpet incident' made me wince.

Ariana chuckled. "Come on, it won't be that bad."

I shook my head. "No."

"You're no fun," Wendell commented.

"Look, it's a ride for two. Why don't you and Ariana go on while I finish my baked potato," I suggested, holding up my half eaten potato. "I don't mind waiting here."

Ariana frowned at me. "Daphne, I don't want to ditch you."

"It's fine," I assured her. "This way I don't have to wait around by myself like a loser when you guys finally decide you want to go on."

Wendell nodded, nudging Ariana in the side. "Let's go, Ari."

"Are you sure?" Ariana asked, looking hesitant.

"It's one ride," I responded. "It's not that big of a deal. I can handle being alone for a few minutes."

Wendell pointed behind me, towards the ride. "It might be a little longer than a few minutes. There's a line."

"Then you better hurry up before it gets longer," I advised. "I'll wait here. When I'm done eating and if you guys aren't back, I'll meet you by the exit of the ride."

After a few more moments of persuading Ariana, she and Wendell finally set off for the ride. A sigh of relief escaped my lips as I dug into my potato again. Rides that left the ground really weren't my things anymore. A few years ago, Puck and I had ridden on a rollercoaster, but he thought it would be funny to take off my seatbelt and tape my hands to the handle bar so I wouldn't fall. Adding the carpet-flying incident with that, I became quite terrified. Just looking at rides made me feel sick. Except the Ferris wheel, but that was a different story.

I watched the crowds of people that walked by the picnic table I was seated on as I ate my baked potato. Oddly enough, I hadn't run into anyone from school yet. It was Friday night. There were supposed to be gaggles of students here, and yet there seemed to be only Ariana, Wendell, and myself from our school. It felt weird.

Something to my right suddenly moved and I snapped my head around so fast to look, I cricked it. Wincing, I rubbed my neck, and then proceeded to glare at a small, black crow loitering on a trashcan. My heart began to slow when I realized that it was just the crow… and not Bryant.

If there was one thing I hated, it was being paranoid.

Luckily for me, Bryant hadn't tried texting me again. And I didn't jinx it by looking at my phone. It wasn't like I was waiting for him to text me. Though not receiving anything from him was throwing me off guard. Was he not texting me anymore because I ignored his first few messages? Was that really all I had to do to get him to leave me alone? It seemed too easy. Too simple.

Without warning, a pair of hands grabbed my shoulder. I let out a strangled cry of surprise, struggling out of the person's grasp. When I turned around and saw Wendell looking at me curiously, I relaxed.

"Ariana come back yet?"

"Hm?"

"Ariana," Wendell repeated. "You know. Short. Brown hair. Our best friend—"

"I know who she is," I snapped, rolling my eyes. "Weren't you just with her?"

Wendell frowned. "No. We ended up having to sit with different people on the ride. I thought she came back here, but I guess not."

"Where would she have gone?"

Wendell shrugged. "Maybe she got lost. Or maybe she went to meet Josh. I think he was supposed to meet us here."

"Huh," I commented, pushing myself away from the table. "We should probably find her… You never know who could be here."

Wendell's eyes instantly hardened. "Daphne, do you know something I should know?"

I shook my head quickly. "N-no! I was just saying…"

"You have your phone on you? I have my mom's," Wendell said, changing the subject. "We can split up and do a search until we find her. Knowing Ariana she probably got distracted with some dart game or something."

I tried to laugh, but it came out as a nervous giggle. "Yeah. And I have my phone." I patted my back pocket. "Text me if you find her."

"You do the same. Ariana should really keep her phone charged," Wendell muttered, pulling out his phone. "It was off when I called it."

I didn't like the sudden anxious feeling that was creeping over me. "Right… I'm going to go look now."

"Same. See you soon."

"See you."

Wendell turned his back on me, and started stalking off in the direction of the games. Turning away from him, I went the opposite way, towards the rides. It was much darker now, surprisingly so. It also seemed less crowded. Was it supposed to be some kind of sign…?

No! What was I thinking? Signs? I resisted the urge to snort. I was thinking way too much into this. It just looked empty because no one was crowding around the food stands, and I wasn't around the popular rides. There was nothing out of the ordinary. I was just being paranoid again.

As I grew closer to the more popular rides, I felt safer due to the large masses of people. Even if Bryant were still here, he wouldn't try anything in the middle of a crowd. No one would be stupid enough to do that. As long as I stayed close to the population, I was as safe as ever. When I found Ariana, we'd meet up with Wendell again, and I'd be even safer. I had no reason to worry… And yet I still was.

A scowl of annoyance made its' way onto my face as I slipped between a children's ride and the merry-go-round. Why was I feeling so anxious? This was supposed to be a fun night out with friends! Why did Bryant have to ruin it? I was severely tempted to look at my phone to see if I had missed any texts from him, but I knew if I did, I'd be breaking my luck of not receiving any.

Bryant wasn't still watching me. He would have said something. Or texted me. Or at least tried _somethin_g. He wouldn't just stay quiet. Where was the amusement in that? If he was here he probably would of—

My thoughts were abruptly cut off when I felt someone clap their hand over my mouth and pull me roughly away from the merry-go-round, and against the back of the children's ride. My eyes shot open as a muffled gasp escaped me. Whoever had a grip on me tried to hold me still as I struggled to liberate myself.

I was in public! There were people not even ten feet away from me. Who would be stupid enough to attack me now? When I finally managed to turn my head around far enough, I nearly had a heart attack.

Sage was grinning at me, his eyes twinkling mischievously. He uncovered my mouth, but continued to hold my arm.

"What are you doing?" I demanded, a little breathless from shock. "You scared the pegasus out of me!"

"I've been calling you name for the last minute," Sage pointed out. "You've been in la-la land or something."

I blushed slightly, gently tugging my arm out of Sage's grasp. "What are you doing here?"

"My mom asked me to take Shaine and Sairi. I couldn't refuse," Sage explained. "They're around here somewhere…"

"Oh."

Sage pushed a stray lock of his hair behind his ear and frowned at me. "Did Matt ever text you?"

I raised an eyebrow. "No, why?"

"I got a text from him about an hour and a half ago asking where you were," Sage told me. "I told him I didn't, and he never texted me back, so I assumed he texted you or something."

I shook my head. "I haven't got any text messages…"

"I texted you like a half hour ago though," Sage said, a frown appearing on his lips. "Are you sure?"

"My phone didn't…" I trailed off, sticking my hand into my pocket and pulling out my phone. Horror sank in when I realized my phone was off. "Oh no."

"What?"

"My phone was off!"

My heart was beating two times faster than usual as I shakily pressed the on key on my phone. The twenty-three seconds it took to turn on felt like centuries. When the home screen had finally loaded I waited another few minutes, and sure enough I received my text messages. Thirteen in total.

I opened my inbox, not surprised to see three of the thirteen texts from Bryant. One was from Sage, and the other nine were from Mr. Firay. Sage cocked his head at me when I looked up at him with a worried expression.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Hold on," I told him, opening the first new text message from Bryant.

_If you turn around, I'm right behind you_.

A shudder ran through me. That message had been sent an hour and a half ago. Now I was kind of glad my phone was off. What would have happened if I had checked my phone when I first received the message? I didn't think I wanted to know. I scrolled to the second text message from Bryant, and opened it.

_I told a small, white lie to Matt. Hopefully he won't get too upset. If you get any text messages from him, don't pay them too much attention._

_P.S. Your friend Ariana is cute._

Bryant told Mr. Firay a lie? What about? And why did he mention Ariana? A sick feeling ran through me, and I clenched my phone a little tighter in my hand. Then next message in my inbox was from Mr. Firay, sent about a minute after Bryant's last one.

_Where are you?_

The next one said the same thing, and so did the next one, and so did the next one, and so did the next one each getting more frantic. The next one he used my full name, and an exclamation point. I clicked on the next one.

_Daphne! Damn it, respond to this or I'm going to think Bryant really did get you._

My eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. Is that what Bryant had told Mr. Firay? That he had "got" me? I turned to Sage; who was watching me with a concerned expression.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

I ignored him, clicking on the next message from Mr. Firay.

_I'm coming to get you._

The next message was from Bryant. I noticed there was an hour time lapse between Mr. Firay's last message and Bryant's most recent one. With only a split-second's hesitation, I opened the text.

_Matt isn't so tough when his Daphne is involved, huh? He needs an attitude check. I don't like the way he's looking at me. Oh well. Stay tuned, Daphne Grimm._

"Holy shi…shiz," I gasped, my mouth opening and closing like a fish, staring at the text message.

"What?"

I turned my attention from my phone to Sage, my eyes wide in terror. "I… I— I think Bryant has Mr. Firay."

Sage's eyes hardened as soon as the words left my mouth. "What do you mean?"

"Bryant texted me, um, implying Mr. Firay was with him," I explained, glancing at the text again. "It doesn't say Mr. Firay is with him or not directly."

Sage quickly yanked the phone out of my grasp and read the text message, a scowl appearing on his face. His eyes grew livid, and he was holding my phone so tightly I was afraid he was going to break it. He nearly dropped it when my ring tone suddenly went off. Sage stared at me for a moment, and then returned his attention to my phone. I figured he was reading my new message.

When Sage's face paled, curiosity got the best of me and I reached out my hand to take my phone back. Sage pulled away, slapping my hand down.

"Sage," I started, narrowing my eyes at him. "I want my phone…"

Sage shook his head. "No…"

"Sage."

"You can't see this," he told me. "Let me delete it first."

Now I was really curious. "Sage, no. Give me my phone."

"No!"

"Sage!" Before he could react I quickly flung out my arm and gathered myself into my hand, and then pulled it back, cradling it to my chest. "Ha!"

"Daphne, really—"

I rolled my eyes. "Come on, Sage. It can't be that bad."

Sage shot me nervous looks as I flipped open my phone again, going to my text message menu. When I found the new text, I noticed it was a picture file from Bryant. Just as I was about to press the open button, I was overcome with the horrible feeling of dread. My heart speed sped up, and my palms instantly became sweaty. Finally, I worked up enough courage to open the file message.

A quiet, surprised, horrified moan escaped my lips when my eyes landed on the image Bryant had sent me. Or should I say, the image of who Bryant had sent me. The image of Mr. Firay.

On the ground.

Limp.

Eyes shut.

And there was blood.

My world suddenly blackened before me and I felt myself falling. Before I could hit the ground, a set of strong, warm arms wrapped around me, and set me straight. It took me a few seconds to realize I was hyperventilating.

"Daphne. Daphne, calm down," I heard Sage order, but I couldn't focus enough to actually be able to see him.

This had to be some kind of joke. That couldn't have been Mr. Firay in that picture. Why would Bryant go after Mr. Firay now? So suddenly? Wasn't he supposed to be after me? This wasn't supposed to happen!

That definitely wasn't Mr. Firay. Bryant could never knock Mr. Firay to the ground. He would never lose to Bryant. That was impossible. Mr. Firay was way too strong. He was an Everafter! Everafters couldn't get hurt, right? But they _could _get a little injured, right? That man had looked exactly like him… My body quaked as I tried to calm myself down. Deep breaths, I told myself, barely able to take my own advice.

"Daphne," Sage said, shaking my shoulders. "Focus."

I looked at him, already feeling my eyes welling up with tears. "Mr. Firay is—"

"He's fine," Sage assured me, but looked unsure. "Bryant wouldn't kill him… Well he would, I guess."

"He's going to kill him?" I uttered in a horrified voice.

Sage blinked at me in surprise realizing what he said. "No! That's not what I mean! I meant… No! Daphne, Matt will be fine."

"Didn't you see the picture?" I demanded, my voice raising. "He doesn't look fine to me! He's— He's hurt! And it's my fault! And my stupid, worthless, piece of crap phone!" As I swore, I slammed my phone onto the picnic table as hard as I could.

Sage quickly gathered my hand in his, holding it tightly. "Daphne, calm down. This isn't your fault. That picture could be fake—"

"It's real," I sniffed, rubbing my eyes with my free arm. "That's definitely Mr. Firay. Bryant has him. Bryant…"

Suddenly Sage pinched my cheeks, making me jump in surprise. I stared at him with wide eyes while he returned my gaze with a serious one.

"Daphne. Take deep breaths. Calm down," he ordered.

I did as he said, trying to calm myself own at least the slightest bit. My mind was racing, my hands shaking, my heart pounding. It felt surreal.

"If Bryant does have Matt, I'll do something about it," Sage continued, removing his hands.

"By yourself? No!" I cried. "What if—"

Sage narrowed his eyes at me. "You want me to leave Matt?"

"No!"

"Then what—"

"I'm coming with you," I told him, clenching my fists.

Sage pursed his lips. "No."

"Sage!"

"Matt told me under no circumstances were you allowed near Bryant," Sage said forcefully. "There's no way you're coming with me."

I glared at him, picking up my phone again. Luckily I hadn't broken it when I smashed it earlier. I dialed Wendell's number by heart, putting the phone to my ear. Sage watched me curiously as I grasped onto my phone, waiting for it to pick up. A nerve-wracking ten seconds passed before I heard the sound of someone picking up.

"Where's Mr. Firay?" I demanded before Bryant had a chance to speak.

"I see you've finally received my messages."

My heart skipped a beat. "Where is he?"

"He's right here."

"Right _where_?"

Bryant chuckled. "Let's see how good your memory is. We're where you first met me. And I have one more surprise for you, to assure you come quickly."

"What?"

After a few seconds of silence I heard someone breathing shakily.

"Daphne?"

My eyes widened in terror. I knew that voice. How could I not? That was my best friend's voice.

Bryant had Mr. Firay _and _Ariana?

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **Wah ha ha. Thought that Daphne would need the saving, didn't you? *smirk smirk* You guys are lucky though –you only have to wait for Sunday to roll in…

OH. I just realized something. I shouldn't say anything though –you guys will die of curiosity…okay, fine –Did I ever tell you guys the story of how Brigid Mendler (that girl from Disney Channel?) sat behind my sister and I when we flew to Los Angeles? I thought I should mention that –it randomly popped up. :3 Though meeting one celeb (I said hi to her, but I was too shy to say anything else) is nothing compared to my friend, Jessica –she's met like, four. And she has pictures. D: She's like a celeb magnet…ah, this was random. ;DDDD I wonder if you guys can tell what I did.

Question of the Whatever: _So, open up your chest and let it in. We have fallen down again tonight. Let the love, love, love begin. Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh. In this world it's hard to get it right. _

If you can guess, those are song lyrics. Your job: Is this the correct lyric order? If not, put it in order. ;D And for either answer, you have to give me the song title. ;D But I'm making this hard for you –you can't look up the song just how it's formatted in this. MWAHAHA. A sure way that I know you will not be able to look this up…ah, I kinda gave the answer away for the first question, but for those who haven't caught on –oh well. :D The first four answers –you all know how obsessed I am with that number- win.

I'm lethargic (;D Who's seen/read the Phantom Toll Booth?) now. So I bid you all adieu for the night.

~Lara


	51. Chapter 51:

**A/N. **DANG. _Only 22 minutes later did I get the first review to Ch. 50. __**DAAAANNGG. **_That was seriously fast. I congratulate you, booksonclouds for your speedy review. :3

Special shout-out to RockstarGurl444 for being the 666 reviewer! ^^

OMG. I had the weirdest dream. I can only remember parts of it because I woke up too early from dreaming. I was on this chat website sorta thing, and I was greeting everyone, that was the only thing I was gonna do for some reason, and this guy replies back and we start talking -it's quite weird. Then he gets offline and I get a phone call from an unknown number. I think it's the guy so I answer it and it's my dad, "DO NOT SPEAK TO THAT GUY." So I'm like, "Okaay?" (How the heck did he know that?) and hang up. Then I'm online again and the guy asks me to be his girlfriend and I say, "What are you saying, you creep?" then I get offline and he's suddenly behind me giving me a hug. It was an AHH! THERE'S A CREEPY STALKER GUY HUGGiNG ME! Then he like vanishes and my parents come downstairs, telling me we're going to throw away unneeded things, so they tell me to throw away these silky blue and purple dresses that look like they cost $1,000 bucks each. So I throw them in the kitchen trashcan. xD Then I wake up. …Ah, sorry, that was random. :3

Okay, winners of the QotW: twilightfunatic (thank you for pointing out that it was 'swing', not 'so') and Eleni for being the only two to give answers!

The song lyrics were jumbled. Here's the right...'form'? Format? Whatever it is:

_Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh. We have fallen down again tonight. In this world it's hard to get it right. Swing open up your chest and let it in. Just let the love, love, love begin._ ~Everbody by Ingrid Michaelson. It's a really cute song. ^^ I love it.

Okay, something in this chapter is something that you may not like, but **PLEASE KEEP READING**. I swear by chapter 53 will you forgive me. If you leave this story once reading this chapter, you shall never find out what happens to Sage and Daphne and Mr. Firay and everyone else. You'll be curious for the rest of your life! With that being said, I hope these words echo in your mind:

_**No one is going to be fatally -and I mean **_**fatally, **_**fatally- injured in this story. No one is going to pass away (I'm not saying that K word nor the D word for some reason...?), so REMEMBER THIS. **_

So! ^^ Let's get on with the chapter everbody! _Everbody, everbody, wants to love! Everybody, everybody, wants to be loved! Oho O Oh, Oho O Oh..._ :3

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 51: One Hit KO<strong>

"Ariana!" I screamed into the phone, my eyes wide in terror. "Ariana!"

"Daphne! What's—" Ariana's voice suddenly disappeared and was replaced with an irritatingly familiar one.

"I expect you here in about fifteen minutes," Bryant said simply.

I swallowed nervously. "Don't hurt Ariana!"

"I won't, as long as you get here on time," Bryant said casually. "I'll be waiting."

There was a click and the call had ended. I turned to Sage, my mouth open in horror. He looked just as terrified as I did. Sage suddenly jammed his hand into his pocket, whipping out his phone.

"Shaine, come grab Sairi and come to the front of the baked potato stand," he said in a rushed voice. "Right now." He snapped his phone shut and turned to me. "Do you have any idea where Bryant would be?"

I nodded. "He said where we first met. That would be the warehouse you took me to."

"That's close," Sage commented, checking his phone. "It's only about ten minutes away."

"Ten minutes?" I cried shrilly. "Bryant wants me there in fifteen or he'll hurt Ariana! We've got to go now!"

Sage's looked hardened. "He gave you a time limit?"

"Yeah." I felt my eyes filling with tears. "I have to go, now!"

Someone put a hand on my shoulder and I jumped violently, turning to see a worried Wendell looking at me. When he noticed my expression, his concern doubled. "What's wrong?"

"Bryant has Ariana," I told him miserably.

"He _what_?" Wendell nearly shouted. "How? When? Where?"

I shook my head. "I don't know how or when! I do know where, and I'm going there now. Give me your car keys."

Wendell stared at me like I was crazy. "You're not going anywhere! That's too dangerous!"

"It's more dangerous for Ariana if I don't go!"

"Why would Bryant so suddenly go after Ariana?" Wendell inquired. "He's been quiet for so long."

I shifted uncomfortably. "Well… earlier I got a few text messages from him. But I thought he was just messing with me," I added quickly, seeing Wendell's expression turn livid.

Wendell grabbed my shoulders and held them roughly. "Daphne! Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"I—I didn't think it mattered." I tried to get away from his grasp. "Wendell, that hurts—"

"Daphne, are you stupid? If you had said something this wouldn't have happened!" Wendell snapped. "You need to learn to swallow your pride—"

"Pride?" I cried, staring at him incredulously. "_Pride_? You think I take pride in not telling someone that my stalker has been texting me? I wasn't going to tell anyone to keep everyone safe, Wendell!"

"That didn't work so well, now did it?" Wendell snorted, shoving me away. "You went and got Ariana captured."

I stared at Wendell, hurt. Tears filled my eyes again and I sniffled, rubbing my eyes. "I didn't know!"

I felt an arm around me and I looked up to see Sage frowning at Wendell. "You two, calm down," he ordered, squeezing my shoulders. "Daphne, it's not your fault. And Wendell… I understand this news is coming as a shock, but don't place the blame on Daphne so easily okay? You two will end up saying things you'll regret later if you keep it up."

Wendell stared at the ground, his fists clenched. Finally, he looked back up at me, sighing. "I'm sorry, Daphne. I know it's not your fault."

I shook my head. "No, it is partially my fault. Now Mr. Firay and Ariana are at Bryant's mercy. I should have texted Mr. Firay right away."

"He has Firay too?" Wendell gasped.

Shaine suddenly appeared in front of me, rushing towards us with Sairi in tow. Sage brushed past me, going up to the girls and saying something to them quickly. "Wendell," Sage started, gaining his attention. "I need you to do me a huge favor."

"What?"

"Bring my sisters home. I can trust you right? Daphne and I need to go save your friend and Matt. I don't want my little sisters coming… just in case something happens."

A shiver went through my body at Sage's words. _Just in case something happens_…

"No," Wendell refused. "I'm coming with you guys."

"No you're not!" Sage and I snapped.

Wendell looked at us in surprise, blinking furiously. "Why not?"

"You've already been attacked once," I pointed out. "You're not going to be in danger again. Please, Wendell. Take Shaine and Sairi home. I don't want them coming with us either and we need to go, _now_."

Wendell pursed his lips at me for a few moments before letting out a sigh. "Fine. But only because I don't want these girls going with you two either. However, I'm texting you an hour from now. And if you don't answer, I'm calling the cops."

I blanked. The cops? What if the cops came and Mr. Firay was still there? "Wendell, no. Not the po—"

"Sounds good," Sage cut me off. "Give us an hour. If you receive no reply, send the police to the old furniture workshop off King Street."

Wendell nodded. "Gotcha."

"But Sage—" I protested.

Sage shook his head. "We can handle this in an hour," he assured me. "As long as we go now. Wendell, I'll have Daphne text you my mom's address when we get in the car."

"Okay," Wendell responded, glancing at me. "Daphne… Be careful."

I swallowed nervously. "You too, Wendell."

He grinned. "I'll try not to hit any squirrels."

Sage quickly grabbed my hand and began sprinting towards the exit of the festival. People gave us annoyed looks as we brushed through them. Someone people gave me wondering looks, probably taking in the look on my face. I probably looked like someone who had just witnessed a murder— I felt like I had just witnessed a murder. Luckily, Sage's car was parked almost right next to the exit. We piled in and Sage wasted no time before peeling out of the parking lot.

While speeding down the streets Sage relayed to me his mom's address, and I quickly texted Wendell it. The ride to the old gang hangout felt like forever. It was silent and tense. Nerves had me drumming my fingers against my leg constantly, had my heart pounding hard, and kept my breathing uneven. Sage's hands were so grasping the steering wheel so hard his knuckles were snow white.

"Daphne," Sage finally spoke, "our goal is just to get Ariana and Matt and to escape. Nothing else."

I swallowed. "Alright." What else did Sage think I'd want to do? Once Mr. Firay and Ariana were safe, I'd want to get out of there as fast as possible.

"If Bryant tries to bargain with you, I want you to say no to everything," Sage continued in a serious voice. "And when I say everything, I mean _everything_."

"Bargain?"

Sage nodded. "Like, I'll let Matt and Ariana free if you stay with me."

My eyes widened. "What? No! I would say yes to that!"

"No, you won't," Sage said firmly. "Daphne, it will be pointless if we save Matt and Ariana, but you get taken instead. We need to figure out how to get you all out of this."

I clamped my mouth shut, thinking hard. What were Bryant's plans? Was he alone? No, he couldn't be alone. Bryant would never have been able to knock Mr. Firay down alone. Mr. Firay was… Mr. Firay. Strong. Resilient. Invincible. That still didn't help Sage and myself though. We needed a strong, reliable plan.

Sage cleared his throat. "If there's a chance for you, Ariana, and Matt to escape, I want you to take it," he started slowly. "Even if it means leaving me behind."

"No," I said instantly. "No!"

"Daphne, wait," Sage commanded, glancing at me from the corner of his eye. "Once you guys break free, you can call the cops. If they come and find the gang and me, nothing will happen to Matt, or myself, since I've never been caught up in any gang trouble."

"But we can't leave you alone in there," I whispered in a horrified voice. "What if they…"

Sage laughed. "Daphne, don't be so worried about me. I've got a few things up my sleeve."

"Like what?"

"It's a secret," Sage said with a wink.

I frowned at him. Although he seemed confident, I couldn't help but still be worried. There had to be some way to assure that Ariana, Sage, Mr. Firay, and myself could escape. If worse came to worse, I would bargain with Bryant. It wasn't like he was going to kill me.

Sage pulled onto the dirt road that led to the abandoned warehouse, and started speeding down it. My heart felt like it was going to burst out of my chest. I took deep breaths, trying to calm down. It wasn't really working.

The warehouse came into view and as we grew closer, Sage cut the engine, quickly unsnapping his seatbelt. I swiped my sweaty palms on my pants before doing the same as Sage, and hastily climbing out the door. Sage met me at the front of the car, and together we made our way up to the front of the building. The steps groaned in an unnerving way under our weight as we hurried towards the door. Sage held me back as he opened the front door, peering in. The main room was pitch black.

"Daphne, your hand," Sage demanded, holding out his hand for me.

It felt a little silly taking his hand. It wasn't like I was a five year old crossing the street with her mom. Nonetheless I took his hand, and he pulled me into the warehouse, leaving the door open so the moon would provide at least a little sight. I held Sage's hand tighter as we went further in, losing all sense of sight.

"Why is it so quiet?" I whispered. The only noises I could hear were the sounds of Sage's and my footfalls. They sounded like a herd of elephants compared to the silence surrounding us.

"Shh," Sage responded. "We're going up stairs now. Careful."

I stumbled on the first step, misjudging the height. Sage held onto me tightly as I corrected myself, gaining my balance again. Each step creaked and groaned under our weight, and each time they did I thought it sounded like an air horn going off. It was too quiet. It was unsettling.

"The Hall of Fame, right?"

"Yeah," I whispered, finally making it to the top of the stairs. "That's where I first saw Bryant."

It took about thirty seconds to reach the door to the Hall of Fame. Sage pressed his ear to the door, and I copied him. It was silent in the room. Suddenly there was a cough, and I instantly recognized it as Ariana's. I reached for the door and yanked it open, ignoring Sage's protests. Stumbling in the dark room, I ran my hands over the wall until I found the light switch. I flipped it on.

Ariana was the first thing I noticed when the room was filled with light. She was sitting on the other side of the room, her knees pulled up to her chest. She squinted for a moment from the sudden light and when she saw me her eyes suddenly widened. Sage strode into the room, quickly surveying it. Ariana pushed herself to her feet, but as soon as she took one step towards me she winced and started falling forwards. Sage caught her before I could even move.

"What's wrong?" I heard him ask.

"My ankle," she responded. "I think I sprained it earlier."

"Where's Mr. Firay?" I asked, only slightly relieved.

Ariana's eyes drifted downwards, towards the front left of the room. The door was blocking my vision so I quickly stepped around it, dropping my eyes to the floor. My heart skipped a beat and a gasp left my mouth when I focused in on Mr. Firay's limp body. I staggered a few feet forwards and slumped to my knees, hovering over him. His eyes were shut, and it almost looked like he was sleeping peacefully. Except for the blood that covered half of his face.

"Mr. Firay?" I squeaked. "Hey. Wake up."

"What happened?" I heard Sage ask Ariana.

I put my ear to his mouth, and felt relief wash over me when I felt his breath against it. At least he was still breathing.

Ariana cleared her throat. "Someone— I don't know who— attacked Mr. Firay while he was untying me. He hit Mr. Firay over the head with a shovel," Ariana continued, her voice cracking on the word shovel. "I— I heard a crack…"

For a second it felt like I couldn't breathe. My chest constricted painfully as I gazed at Mr. Firay's peaceful face. That was how Bryant had managed to strike Mr. Firay down? Using a cheap attack like that? Anger boiled up inside of me. Bryant was definitely going to pay.

I gently brushed Mr. Firay's hair away from his forehead, my breath catching when I caught sight of a long, deep, bloody gash running along from his eyebrow to his ear. Tears filled my eyes again and my heart clenched painfully. This was my fault. And my phone's fault. If I made it out of here alive, I was smashing it to pieces and buying a new one from a different company. Actually, I think burning it with a wand would've been much better.

"Mr. Firay," I brushed my fingers along his jaw. "Please wake up. Can you hear me?"

There wasn't even the slightest response.

"Do you know where Bryant is right now?" Sage questioned Ariana. "When was the last time you saw him?"

"Who's Bryant?"

"The man who hit Mr. Firay with a shovel," I responded, turning to look at Ariana.

Ariana chewed her lip. "Oh… I haven't seen him for maybe the past ten minutes? He dumped Mr. Firay and me in here after taking us from the fair. He told me not to leave, and if I did Mr. Firay and I would both be, um, harmed."

Sage furrowed his eyebrows. "And he hasn't been back since? Was he with anyone else?"

"There were two other men," Ariana told him.

Only two other men? That thought made me feel a bit more relieved. That meant if something went on it'd be three on two. I smiled wryly. Well, more like three on one. I didn't know how much help I could be to Sage. Sage set Ariana against the wall before coming towards me. He crouched down beside me, taking in Mr. Firay. He inhaled sharply, brushing his hand lightly against the gash.

"That needs medical attention," he commented, pulling his hand back. "Daphne, take this."

I turned to Sage, blinking in surprise when I realized he was holding out a pocketknife. He shoved it closer to me and I quickly took it from him, my eyes wide. "Sage…"

"It's for your protection," Sage told me. "Since Bryant isn't around right now, we might as well try to get out right now. The longer we stick around, the chances of Bryant coming back and finding us here increases. Right now Matt is a major liability. We need as much time as we can get."

"You're not supposed to move someone with a head injury," I commented in a quiet voice.

Sage smiled at me. "It's better than leaving him here to die, right?"

My mouth suddenly went dry, and I could only nod.

"You help Ariana, I'll carry Matt."

Without needing to be told twice I pushed myself off the ground and hurried towards Ariana. She gave me the "you-have-a-lot-of-explaining-to-do" look as I took her arm and wrapped it around my shoulder. After a moment of adjusting ourselves so we were both comfortable, I turned around and found Sage carrying Mr. Firay princess-style.

"What?" he snapped when he caught me staring.

I blushed slightly, rearranging my expression into a blank one. "Um, nothing… Prince Charming."

Ariana chuckled as Sage's face heated up. He ignored my jibe and gestured with his head for me to follow him out of the room. The main room was still jet-black, and we all treaded with caution.

"Sage?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you handle the stairs?" I asked him.

There was a moment of silence before Sage responded. "Yeah, I can hold onto the railing."

A nerve-wracking ten minutes passed before I heard Sage sigh in relief, signaling he had made it to the bottom of the staircase without any problems. Ariana and I were easily able to climb down, and we caught up with Sage quickly. Like a shot, I realized that the front door wasn't open anymore. Sage must have noticed too, because I heard him curse quietly.

It didn't surprise me when Sage found the door locked. Before either of us could speak, light filled the main room. I squinted for a minute while my eyes adjusted, and when they did I locked gazes with Bryant, who was standing on the balcony. He smirked at me.

"Daphne! You made it."

"Yeah," I forced out between my clenched teeth.

Ariana tugged gently on the back of my shirt. "Daphne, put me against the door."

Without any questions asked, I set Ariana against the door. She put her back to it, staring up at Bryant. I glanced over my shoulder to see Sage still holding Mr. Firay, a scowl on his face.

"Poor Matt is in bad shape huh?"

"That's because you're a coward who uses cheap shots to knock people down," I shot back at him angrily.

"Daphne," Sage said in a quiet, warning tone.

Bryant laughed, leaning over the railing of the balcony. "Cowardice? Daphne, love, I was just using the moment to my advantage."

There was a pair of footsteps to my right and I looked over and saw a tall, burly man coming towards me. Another pair of footfalls to my left indicated there was something also coming from that direction. The burly man to my right stopped a good hundred yards away, a frown on his face. I watched him warily for a second before glancing at the other man, who had also stopped walking. His fiery red hair was easy to have him identified as Peter. He smirked at me, tapping a wand to his fingers, making me blink in surprise. How did he get a hold of Merlin's wand?

My mind was racing. I needed to think of a way that would let Sage carry Mr. Firay to his car, and get Ariana there as well. It would be almost impossible for Sage to have time to bring them both separately, even if I distracted Bryant. If we could take out the two men on the ground level, I was positive I could deal with Bryant. I had escaped him once before, hadn't I? Sage couldn't be the distraction because I knew I wouldn't be able to carry Mr. Firay's body.

A small amount of hopelessness began to rise in me, but I forcefully pushed it away. I had to think positively. We only had a few choices. Try to break down the door and escape before anyone caught us; take out the men on the ground floor and find a new way to escape; distract Bryant until Sage found a way to get Mr. Firay and Ariana to the car; or let Bryant get us. The last choice wasn't actually a choice. It was what would happen if we couldn't escape.

"Listen," Bryant spoke up. "I know your friend Wendell said he was going to call the police in an hour. It's been just about forty-five minutes since then, so that means we have about fifteen minutes to finish this before the cops show."

"How did you know?" I gasped.

Bryant smirked. "I have spies, duh. Shall we get down to business then?"

The sudden pounding of feet made my heart leap into my chest. I turned right, watching as the burly man suddenly started running straight at me. Throwing my head to the other side I noticed Peter was coming as well. Sage placed Mr. Firay on the ground as quickly and gently as possible, and intercepted the man from my right. My hand clenched the pocketknife I was still holding.

"Now, I don't want to hurt you," Peter told me as he stopped a few feet away from me. "I just need to bring you up to Bryant."

"No," I stated stubbornly.

"Then I do it by force."

A startled gasp escaped my lips as Peter instantly threw a punch towards my face. I ducked just in time, staggering backwards. Without hesitating, Peter threw another punch, which I managed to avoid again. I struggled with the pocketknife in my hand, trying to get it open. No matter how much I tried though, it wouldn't unlatch. Figures. Sage would give me a pocketknife I couldn't open.

"You're pretty good at evading, aren't you, Grimm?" Peter commented, looking amused and impressed.

I dodged another of his blows. "I've had practice."

"Unfortunately for you, I don't think you're paying enough attention."

Before I knew what happened, I was flat on my back. I stared in horror at Peter hovering over me, a smirk on his face. When I looked to my left I realized I had tipped over Mr. Firay's leg. He put a foot on my chest, and put pressure on it. I gasped in surprise, trying to pull his foot off.

"Should I knock her out?"

"Whatever works," Bryant called down. "Just don't kill her."

"Sure," Peter said with a grin. "Night-night, Daphne."

He began to press harder into my chest and I looked to my side to see Ariana staring at me in terror. With my left hand I fumbled with the pocketknife again, wincing as the more pressure was applied to my chest. It felt like I was suffocating. My left hand clenched uncontrollably as Peter suddenly pressed into me as hard as I could. A slight pain ran through my finger, and after a second my finger rubbed against something sharp and cool. The pocketknife had unlatched!

There was a loud crash behind me just as I brought up my hand and slashed the foot on me. Something fell out of Peter's hand and I snatched it towards me. Peter cried out in surprise and pain, pulling his foot away from my chest. I quickly sent my leg straight up, right into his crotch, making him stagger forwards. For a horrifying second I thought he was going to fall on top of me, but a hand flashed before my eyes, making contact with his face. From the force of the punch, Peter stumbled backwards, landing on the ground, unconscious.

Sage grinned down at me. "And Matt thought he was the only one who could do a one hit K.O."

"Ten bucks says I can too," a calm voice commented.

I looked beyond Sage, and straight at Bryant. When I realized what he was holding, I screamed in panic. I scrambled to my feet, never taking my eyes off Bryant's gun, or where he was pointing it. Straight at Sage.

"Wait!" I screamed.

Bryant spared me one glance. "I'm an impatient person."

I didn't even have time to blink before Bryant squeezed the trigger. A loud cracking noise filled the room and my mouth fell open in horror as I twirled around to see Sage, his face frozen in shock. Then, just as I reached out to grab him, he fell over backwards.

"One shot K.O," Bryant stated simply, an amused smirk slipping onto his face.

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **Like I said –you'll forgive me by chapter 53 or so. DON'T LOSE HOPE ON SAGE!

Did anyone start screaming when Bryant shot Sage? Tell me your reactions! ^^

And to answer some of your questions, I know Mr. Firay/Mustardseed is an Everafter. However, Briar died being smashed against a tree, so that doesn't mean MSeed is like, _immortal _immortal. So it's justified that MSeed is hurt and is able to have blood coming out of his injury because he's not an immortal that has golden blood. And who knows –he might get into that cocoon thing like Puck. *shrugs*

HAPPY TIME CHANGE DAY! I think it should be –actually- eight right about now. I'm still confused with the time change.

Last words before I go to bed:

No review replies. D: I know, I know –I'm sorry. You're all probably like, "LARA! BUT IT'S SPRING VACATION ALREADY! CAN'T YOU FIND THE TIME TO REPLY TO US?" I don't have vacation until April. Sorry.

OMG! HETALIA IS SO FUNNY. I LOVE ITALY AND CHIBI ITALY. He's so cute.

HUNGER GAMES COMES OUT THIS WEEK! YAYA!

Fluggernuggets.

I believe that's it. OH, I finished reading my book for this semester! YAY! The Quest for a Maid was really great at the end –I thought the Princess was dead, but she wasn't, and Meg's gonna marry Peem instead of Davie, and…Shoosh, I'm spilling.

Sorry of some of the A/N is babbling like and whatnot –I'm supposed to be getting my lunch ready for tomorrow and I should be asleep by now, but oh well. I'll fix it tomorrow probably.

Any errors? Comments? Feel free to express your feelings in a review! ^^

See you **Friday!**

~Lara


	52. Chapter 52:

**A/N.**HOLY FRIGGIN MOZZLETOFF!

Seven-friggin-hundred reviews!...PLUS! Geezums -I'm so jumpy! _Thank. You. ALL. Man!_I'm so fired up to write a good Daphne and MSeed scene! (Though, that's still for a later chapter :3) Like...gosh darn it, I'm crying againn. D': Thank you thank you thank you THANK YOU SO FRIGGIN MUCH! You have no idea how much I enjoy your reviews! They never ever fail to make my mood brighten. I say thank you a lot, so you might find it annoying but ALL OF YOU are amazing. Just amazing. Do you guys think this story will get to 1,000 by the time it's done?...Nah, that's a bit of a stretch, but that'd be so cool! ^^

With that, I'd like to send my **congrats to GoodetoKnow for being the 700th reviewer!**Like I've done before, you get to ask me four spoiler questions that I will answer honestly, or you may give the prize away. Or you may suggest a different prize -no one-shots though. (You've already given me three questions, so you can luck out on that 4th one if you want) I'm as busy as a bee. It's a wonder I can keep up with school and FTFT. :3

I...am going to try to reply to all anon. reviews that have questions or things I feel the need to reply to. Hopefully my eyes won't start crossing when I'm halfway through them. ^^

Oh! And the reason why I emphasized no character death: Obviously, I don't want you all to start screaming at me for what happened at the end of Ch. 51 -you'd have survived, of course. :) But if I hadn't, then you would be ripping your hair out in frustration, wondering what would happen to Sage and if he died. That idea seemed cruel, so I just wanted to assure you guys on that. Make sense? Hope so! ^^

QotW: (This isn't the QotW, but do you guys want me to do more of those song QotW's, or ask regular questions, scenarios, and riddles? Okay, now here's the Question:) What scares you the most (or close to, or at least something that makes you jumpy if you're not scared easily)? I'll just answer mine now:

Being alone, I think. And knowing that you'll be leaving Earth less than 100 years (unless you drink from the Fountain of Youth or something). It's scary, thinking about what's going to happen to you after you pass away. Man, this was a creepy answer -I'll pick something lighter next chapter.

Oh, and I'm following Curlscat's idea and **your answer will only qualify if you comment about the chapter itself also. **If you just give an answer -even if it is the best- it shall be rejected! ^^

Can anyone recite the preamble of the Constitution without looking at Google or something? ^^ Schoolhouse Rock, rocks.

Oh, and one more thing: Daphne's been wearing these weird pants -those straight-legs, or whatever they're called- these past few chapters (since Wendell and Ariana picked her up to go to the fair). Keep that in mind. Also, I might be wrong on my memory, but I think Bryant knows MSeed is a fairy. Well, he does in this chapter.

Thank you all again! Here's Chapter 52!

**Chapter 52: Burns and Breeches**

It felt like time had stopped. Seeing someone shot was a lot different than hearing about it. The scene of his body tumbling to the ground played over and over again in my head. Sage lay stationary on the ground while Bryant hummed to himself, stroking his pistol with his thumb. Ariana let out a horrified croak, her eyes glued to Sage's motionless body.

I felt like someone had poured a bucket of ice water over me, and through my veins. Numbness spread through me. Bryant shot Sage. Sage could be dead.

"Sage?" I called, staring at his motionless body. "Sage! Sage, get up!"

No response.

My chest tightened. "Sage, please! Please!" I pleaded pathetically. "Sage, get up! Don't die!"

"Daphne," Ariana started in a quiet voice, sounding like she had been crying. "He could be alive… The bullet didn't go through his heart or head…"

Ariana had a point. He had been shot in the stomach. Wendell survived two bullets. Sage had to be able to survive one! But he was still unconscious and hurt. There was still the chance he could die.

I looked from Bryant, to Sage, and back to Bryant again, helplessness welling up in me again. Everyone was being harmed, and it was my fault. Sage didn't even do anything! Neither did Ariana! Anger filled me and I clenched my fist, taking a menacing step towards Bryant. "You—"

"You… bastard."

My eyes shot open, and I twirled around to see Mr. Firay pushing himself off the ground.

"Mr. Firay!" I cried in disbelief and relief.

Mr. Firay didn't even look at me. His eyes were focused on Bryant, anger blazing in them. Bryant smirked back at Mr. Firay, cocking his head to the side.

"You're alive?"

"And you're about to be dead," Mr. Firay growled, starting towards Bryant. He took about three steps, then let out a groan, and started falling.

I quickly stepped forward to catch him, grasping onto his shoulders. His weight almost knocked me over, and I struggled to keep him upright. Bryant chuckled from where he was, shaking his head pitifully.

"Matt, you can't even stand. What makes you think you're going to kill me?"

Mr. Firay shoved me away from him. "I can stand fine."

"Mr. Firay—" I protested, staggering back a few steps. He ignored me, swaying on his feet for a few seconds.

"That was a pretty cheap shot earlier," Mr. Firay commented, sarcasm dripping in his voice. "Are you really that pathetic? It's a wonder how you became gang leader."

Bryant leered at Mr. Firay. "Regretting leaving?"

"As if," Mr. Firay spat angrily.

Bryant shrugged his shoulders. "You and Sage were the greatest assets. You could still be. Sage…" Bryant glanced at Sage's body on the ground. "Well, he could have been."

"I'm not going back," Mr. Firay declared stubbornly. "Especially not under the likes of you."

"Likes of me?" Bryant responded with a bark of laughter. "Where do you get off acting so high and mighty?"

Mr. Firay didn't respond, making Bryant scowl in irritation. "You really piss me off."

"Good."

"Mr. Firay!" I warned quietly, staring at him with wide eyes. Was he trying to incite Bryant?

Bryant's eyes slid over to me, and I saw Mr. Firay's shoulders tense. I glared at Bryant as viciously as I could. He laughed at me expression.

"Oh, someone is angry," he taunted.

"I'm—"

"Daphne don't talk to him," Mr. Firay ordered flatly.

I looked towards Mr. Firay in surprise. He still had his back to me. Why didn't he want me talking to Bryant? Bryant turned his attention back to Mr. Firay, his eyebrows furrowed in annoyance

"Don't tell her what to do," Bryant demanded.

Mr. Firay laughed once. "What? Are you her father?"

Bryant smirked. "Nope, but maybe her boyfriend soon." Mr. Firay's fist clenched. "Isn't it curious?" Bryant continued. "How much she looks like my old Daphne?"

"She isn't your old Daphne."

"Nor is she yours."

"She's got nothing to do with this," Mr. Firay snapped.

Bryant raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Is she a sore spot? Because you couldn't protect her, like you _promised_?"

"I—"

"Come to think of it, she gave you two chances, right?" Bryant stated, tapping his chin with his finger. "And you failed both times?"

Mr. Firay's shoulders sagged. "That's…"

"And now it's going to happen again, huh? You're going to let the person you care for the most suffer the same fate? There's nothing you can do about it either."

Mr. Firay stayed silent. For a moment, the only noise I could hear were Ariana's shaky breaths, Mr. Firay's heavy breathing, and my own heart in my ears. I was shaking uncontrollably. Not from fear, but from anger. Bryant was dabbing salt in Mr. Firay's wounds. He was going into the past that didn't need to be delved into.

Bryant snickered. "You're not that good upon keeping your promises, huh? Did you promise this Daphne over here the same thing? That you would protect her, just like old Daphne?"

"Mr. Firay," I whispered so only he could hear me, clenching my fists. "Don't let him talk to you like that!"

Bryant seemed to be irritated with Mr. Firay's lack of response. "Keeping silent? Is the guilt too much for you? Knowing that, once again, you're going to lose Daphne to me. Maybe this is what you deserve. For being a liar. For promising that you'll protect someone and failing. What kind of man are you, Matt? Do you think you're better than me?" Bryant guffawed. "Oh, isn't that a thought? Poor Matt. It seems like you're—"

My hand made contact with Bryant's face. The loud _slap _resounded through the room. Bryant stared at me in surprise while I returned his look with a furious glare, breathing heavily.

"Matt is more of a man than you could ever wish to be," I told him through clenched teeth. "The past doesn't matter. What's done is done. Mistakes are forgiven. What matters is today. And today, you're nothing compared to Mat—"

Without warning, Bryant backhanded me. I cried out in surprise, stumbling back a few steps. Mr. Firay yelled Bryant's name from behind me angrily and Ariana screamed loudly. Before I could react, Bryant shoved me, looking furious.

"Matt is a better man than me? Matt, who couldn't protect the other Daphne? Matt, who can't protect anyone? _Mustardseed_, this selfish sparkly bastard who got you tangled up in this mess?"

"I got myself tangled up!" I shouted at me, shoving him away from me. "Don't touch me!"

Bryant quickly grabbed my hair, pulling me closer to him. "Tell me, Daphne. Are you blind?"

My hand flew to his hand in my hair, grasping on tightly. Pain shot through my head as he pulled on my hair roughly.

"You know, if it wasn't for Matt I wouldn't have met you," he told me. "This wouldn't be happening. Don't you blame Matt at all?"

"Mr. Firay isn't the psycho who wants to kidnap me just because I look like his old girlfriend!"

Bryant's eyes hardened. "Surely you don't think Matt likes you for you."

"He does," I stated stubbornly. "Mr. Firay knows me, Bryant. You don't know anything about you. I'm not Daphne Pierce! I'm Daphne Grimm!"

Bryant growled, yanking me closer to him with my hair again. I cried out in pain, wildly swinging my fist. When I felt it make contact with Bryant's face, once again I was shoved backwards. This time I ran into something hard, and a strong arm shot by my face, punching Bryant, who already had his eyes shut from my punch, in the face. Mr. Firay grabbed my shoulder painfully, yanking me away from Bryant.

"Run," he ordered quietly, shoving me behind him.

Bryant swung his fist at Mr. Firay's face. Mr. Firay dodged, once again pulling me roughly to the side so I wouldn't be hit. This time he shoved me sideways, and I staggered a few steps away from him before falling. Ariana was screaming something at me, but I was too focused on Mr. Firay and Bryant to understand her. Bryant managed to knick Mr. Firay on the side of the jaw, and Mr. Firay retaliated by landing a blow on Bryant's right temple. Anyone watching knew Mr. Firay had the advantage.

But anyone watching also knew something wasn't right with Mr. Firay.

His breathing was heavier than it should have been, and his movements slower and sloppier than usual. While he still had the upper hand, he was handicapped by the injury on his forehead. I had to think quickly. That injury would not fare well in this fight… If Mr. Firay was hit there again, even if he was an Everafter, something serious could happen.

"I thought Everafters were all powerful and strong," Bryant taunted, only slightly breathless. "Feeling a little tired?"

"No," Mr. Firay responded, dodging another of Bryant's swings.

Bryant smirked. "Liar."

Mr. Firay landed a hard blow on Bryant's lower jaw. Bryant's eyes shot open in surprise, and he let out a little gasp. Mr. Firay smirked slightly as Bryant closed his eyes, staggering backwards. Relief washed through me immediately. It was over.

Suddenly Bryant's eyes snapped open, a smug smile on his lips as he brought his arm straight into Mr. Firay's face. Right where the injury before was. A split-second of terror passed, and I blinked. When I opened my eyes, Mr. Firay was crumpled on the floor. Bryant kicked him savagely. Ariana started screaming again as a gasp escaped my lips.

Now it was my turn to step in again. With my chest constricted tightly, I stepped in-between the two men, holding up my hands, my eyes shut tight. Bryant immediately stopped assaulting Mr. Firay. When I opened my eyes I saw Bryant staring down at me with a scowl.

"T-the cops will be here soon," I told him in a quiet, shaky voice.

Realization flashed on Bryant's face and for a minute he looked panicky. "Shit." Then he calmed down again, giving me a hard look. "Then you have two choices, Daphne: Watch as yet another person close to you dies, or come with me." He looked meaningfully at Ariana.

"Daphne," Ariana started, but I shook my head at her.

"No more," I said quietly, my eyes flickering down to Mr. Firay's once again motionless body. "Bryant, I'll go with you. Don't hurt them anymore! Please!" I begged, tears springing to my eyes. "I promise to do anything you ask. Just let them go."

Bryant sighed contently. "That's what I like to hear. Good choice, Daphne."

"Daphne…"

I ignored Ariana, keeping my eyes focused on Bryant and his gun. My eyes flickered to the staircase on the other side of the room. The staircase I had fallen through not so long ago… An idea suddenly formed in my mind, and I caught my breath.

"Hey," Bryant said, stooping down next to the Peter Pan's body. "Pete, wake up. Cops are coming soon."

"Ariana," I started in the quietest voice I could conjure. "Listen closely."

Ariana made a sound that showed me she was listening.

"I'm going to lead Bryant upstairs," I told her, my trying to keep my voice calm. "I want you to escape."

"What about—"

I shook my head slightly. "The cops will help Mr. Firay and Sage. Just escape as soon as we're on the sixth stair on the staircase, okay?"

"Why—"

"Okay?" I repeated forcefully.

"Okay," Ariana mumbled begrudgingly. "Will you be okay?"

I glanced at her. "I hope."

Bryant made a sound of disagreement with his tongue, pushing himself back into a standing position. "Seems like Sage really packed a punch. It's such a shame…" Bryant glanced at Sage's body on the ground.

"Bryant," I started, keeping my voice steady. "My phone is in that room over there," I said, pointing to the far side of the room, on the second floor. "While looking for Ariana I dropped it in there."

"And?" Bryant asked, raising an eyebrow.

I gave him a flat look. "If the cops find it in there, they'll have a lead. Aren't you planning on kidnapping me?"

Bryant looked surprised for a minute, than concern flashed across his face. "Shit. You're right."

"Are you going to go get it?" I questioned.

"Yeah, and you're coming with me," he stated, grabbing my arm. "Let's go."

I gave Ariana a meaningful look before following Bryant to the other side of the room. To cover any noises of Ariana moving, I decided to talk.

"How come you only brought two people with you?"

Bryant shrugged. "I felt like any more would be too suspicious. People at the fair were already giving suspicious looks to Peter, Jamie, and myself. Besides, I knew you'd come around if I threatened Matt and your friends. In that way, you're just like my old Daphne."

A cold chill ran through me. Yeah, just like her…

Bryant started climbing the steps, still with me in tow. I counted in my head as he climbed.

_One._

_Two._

_Three._

I swallowed nervously. What if the steps didn't give out? What if we made it to the top of steps? What would I do then? Try to run? What if Ariana hadn't made it out by then? My plan would be ruined. This was the only thing I had left to rely on. If this didn't work then…

_Four._

_Five._

_Six._

Bryant stepped on the seventh step, then the eighth, and then the ninth. The one above it, the tenth, was the one I had fallen through before. Bryant over stepped it, putting his foot down on the eleventh. I held my breath, waiting, watching. Bryant put all his weight on the step.

Nothing happened.

Immediately panic welled up inside of me. Why didn't the step give way? Bryant had to weigh at least one hundred pounds more than me! Without thinking, I quickly jumped onto Bryant's back. Bryant let out a groan of surprise, falling back onto the eleventh step. This time there was a distinguishing crack.

"What the hell?" Bryant shouted as his foot plummeted through the stair.

I felt myself falling as well, and I gasped in surprise, throwing my arms forwards, trying to grab the next stair. Luckily, I managed to get a good grasp, but I felt Bryant's hand close over my leg. I was yanked down, my nail scraping against the wood as my hand slipped closer to the edge.

Panic flared within me again. I hadn't expected Bryant to be able to grab me before he fell!

"Don't you dare let go," Bryant growled. "Or you'll regret it."

"I don't plan to let go," I shot back.

"Good."

I tried pulling myself up, but with Bryant clinging onto me, it was fruitless. My arm was already tiring, and we hadn't even been hanging for a minute. It took all my willpower to keep hanging on while my arm protested painfully. I looked over my shoulder, my eyes widening in surprise when I noticed Ariana wasn't by the door anymore. Nor was Mr. Firay. Or Sage. How had Ariana carried both of them out already?

I shook my head. I shouldn't be worried about how she did, I should be happy she managed to do it. Now all I needed to do was find a way out of the mess I got myself into. My hand slid another inch closer to the edge and I groaned, struggling to hold on. My guess was that the drop was a good fifteen-to-twenty feet. If I landed wrong, it would be enough to severely injure.

To my embarrassment, I felt my pants sliding lower. I really wanted to pull them up, but I couldn't afford to pull them up. Plus, with Bryant clinging onto them it wasn't surprising that they were falling down… I let out a small gasp.

Bryant was holding onto my pants.

Not me.

My pants.

I looked down to double check that he actually was clinging onto my pants, not my ankle. He really was. Just as my pants slid down another inch, my hands slipped again. My nails scraped on the wood and some slivers got stuck under my fingernails, making me wince in pain. I had to make Bryant let go.

I started moving my feet together, trying to take off my shoes.

"What are you doing?" Bryant demanded. "Stop moving your feet."

My first shoe came off without a problem, and I heard it fall to the ground below. It was a terrifying five seconds. My next shoe came off just as easily. The next thing I had to take off would be a bit more difficult.

I could already feel my face heating up. A part of me really didn't want to do it, but the rational part told this was the only way to save myself. I made sure I had a good grasp on the wood with my left hand before letting go with my right. I then remembered the wand, and grabbed it from my pocket, holding it between my teeth. It might be useful. Instantly my left hand slid down against the wood. Now I was barely hanging on.

In one swift motion, I pulled off my belt. Immediately, my pants began slightly off. Bryant only had time to let out a surprised shout before my pants came completely off.

I had to remember to thank my mom for picking up boxers at the store for me, and thank myself for not wearing girly panties today. Heck, from this day on I'd wear nothing but boxers.

A cold feeling suddenly went through me when I felt hands clamp on my ankles. Bryant let out a laugh. "Thought you could get rid of me so easily, did you?"

I panicked. What should I do? What should I do? He was holding onto my ankles tight, and grasping the floor above me was getting harder. I tried to calm down, then a thought ran through my head. This wouldn't have happened if I'd just use the wand. I wondered if I could cast spells using my teeth. Shaking my head in a circle, the wand started to glow.

"Gi're 'om 'agic!" I said with my teeth clenched. Suddenly, there was heat on my legs, and I heard Bryant let out a little gasp.

"Ow, hot, hot!" The heat immediately disappeared when Bryant let go. There was a thump and a long, low groan from under me. Using all my strength, I hoisted myself back onto the steps. As soon as I was safe, my arms gave out, and I let out a relieved breath. There has never been a time when I loved magic as much as I do right now. I reached for the wand, but then I heard another groan from under me, making me jump. I swiped it from the ground and was on my feet, scampering down the steps. I turned to go grab my pants, but instantly scolded myself. Bryant was definitely still conscious. I had to get out of here now.

"Don't move," I heard Bryant order.

A sudden, awful, anxious feeling washed over me. I suddenly dropped the wand –a stupid move. It felt like time had slowed down as I turned and faced Bryant. Have of me expected what I saw, while the other half didn't. First I glanced at his hands, seeing the red burns on them. Then a startled squeak escaped my mouth when my eyes focused on the gun Bryant was pointing at me.

Bryant attempted to push himself to his feet, but he groaned and eased his body back to the ground. "You…" he growled, glaring at me. "You'll regret this."

"No I won't," I said boldly, even though my voice was shaking.

Bryant never lowered the gun pointed at me. "Daphne, I don't understand why you don't want to come with me. I wasn't going to hurt you."

"Wasn't?"

Bryant narrowed his eyes. "After the way you've acted tonight, I think you deserve punishment."

"Punishment?" I cried shrilly. "I deserve punishment? After you kidnapped my best friend, almost killed the man you know I love, and shot Sage? And I still deserve punishment? For what? For not wanting to go with a creep like you? Bryant, you better listen to me. I'm _not_ Daphne Pierce. I'm Daphne Grimm. I'm not in love with you, nor will I ever be. You don't know me, Bryant!"

Bryant gave me a harsh glare. "Come here."

"No!"

"Fine, you leave me no choice." Bryant readjusted the gun in his hand.

I felt my heart drop. "Bryant, don't…"

"If I can't have you, no one can," he told me, reminding me of one of the many horror movies Ariana, Wendell, and I watched last summer. Except this wasn't a horror movie. This was my life.

Before I could protest, I watched as Bryant's finger squeezed the trigger. I cried out, raising my hands to cover my face, even though I knew that wouldn't help anything. I could feel the bullet tearing through my skin, ready to render me useless.

**A/N. **Dun dun dun. Alrighty. Let's get to the anons! Finally!

(Ch. 51 Anon[s])

Yellow.r0se not logged in: Sage's my favorite person, too. I'm glad you understand. Ah, that's all right, as long as I hear once from you, I'm good. How's the new iPod? Or have you not gotten it yet? Thanks! :D Yeah, but you know me –these chapters get done at night, so I don't think so well. :3 Here's the update! Hope you enjoyed.

Countrygirl: That's fine. :D Oh, I see. That makes sense. Lol, hyperventilated. :D ALWAYS in April. But it's good because it's usually longer. Like –it feels longer. I dunno how to describe. :3 Oh, we took ITBS this week and last –FINALLY OVER!

PenguinLoverGurl: That's okay. :D Aw, I'm glad you're loving the story! I know –I'm cruel. XD Not really –what would be worse is if he was murdered. He's not. :D Lol, I do, too. …WHAT? 5th graders like that kind of music? Oh geezums, the kids are becoming adults. It's horrifical. There are kids in my sister's grade (she's in 2nd) and _they're dating and kissing and AHHH! _Not my sister, of course. But AAAAHHH! What is happening to our future generations? Yep, in FL. Nope, nowhere near that city, lol. Um, I live in the southwest is all I'm going to say. :3 Thanks for the review!

Killerbunnies: In April. Not really –because all the other schools have it earlier, we're like the only kids out and it's hilarious. XD Lol. Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed that Prince Charming thing. I liked that scene, too. :D

(Ch. 50 Anon[s])

LLAMACORN RIDER: (I'll reply to your signed in review –hopefully- soon) Lol, I'm like that sometimes. :D Haha, that means I must be good with suspense. :DD I don't think it's healthy, but…it's like candy: Once you taste it, you have to keep eating it. I'm not using drugs as a simile because I'd never want to have drugs after it burns my throat or whatever. :3 I'm glad I brightened your day! ^^ Lol –you know what the irony of my mistake is? I JUST took an English test on "Troublesome Verbs" and they talked about using "would have" and "would of". XD Lol. I thought that was funny. Glad you liked the chapter!

(Ch. 48 Anon[s])

Rockinjellybeans: …Um, I'm not sure how to reply to this. Firstly, I'll say that you totally made me squirt ice tea out of my nose (IT HURTS! Not as much as Coke, of course) and secondly, they're not in a relationship yet. Heck, they're not going to be _that _close until maybe the sequel. And…I've just turned 13. I'm not…I can't…:3 If I ever do…which is unlikely…I'll get my co-writer person to do it (yes, you, Jordan) because she's a lot more knowledgeable than me…well, her brother is. But. We'll think about it. Thanks for the –cough- interesting review. xDD

Longliveharrypotter: I'm so glad you understand what I mean. :D …A TWO WEEK VACATION? Man, you are the most thoughtful reviewer I've ever come across. That's sweet. But I don't want to disappoint you and any other friends, so I'll just keep updates to two a week. :D Thanks, though! That's really generous!

Rosebud143: Well look! I'm replying! ^^ Sorry it's late, though. :3 Anyways, that's really sweet of you. :D Aw, I'm really glad you liked it. No, sorry I didn't –at least, I don't recall having them kiss. XD AW! YOU'RE GENEROUS, TOO! I love generous reviewers, putting others before themselves. :D Cool! I don't think I've ever had a number 1 fan. ^^

PHEW. Gosh, that was freakin' long. It would've been longer if I replied to EVERY SINGLE reviewer. Just know –those of you anons that I didn't reply to- that your reviews made me happy! It's just there are so many, and I decided to reply to the ones who and questions and stuff. Thank you, all. :D

So, I tried to incorporate some magic –sorry it wasn't much. Now that I think of it, this isn't much of a magic-filled story, nor will it really be. This was really just an action-y story. :3 Sorry.

Tired, tired…But, another chapter's coming **Sunday! **Or wait, do you want Monday? Which do you prefer?

Sorry if some of this didn't make sense, or if there were many errors. It's 10:46 EST now, and I'm tired. I have violin and piano tomorrow. YAAYAYAYAYYAY!

Marukaite chikyuu, marukaite chikyuu, marukaite chikyuu, boku HETALIA! :D

~Lara


	53. Chapter 53:

**A/N. **My brain is mush. Dunno why -I had a lazy day- but it's mush.

Sorry for another late-at-night update –you may place the blame on my little sister and her obsession of The Wanted.

By the way, I guess I confused you -Daphne wasn't shot. She was _about to be. _I know that doesn't seem like a big difference, but whatever. You'll get it in less than 30 seconds if you read fast enough.

I'm replying to anons again! Don't worry! ^^ Enjoy chapter 53! And EoT: Remember that scene I sent you where I tried writing out "one of those" scenes? That's in here. XD

Winner of the QotW: _Snakes scare me a lot. And piranahs. I can handle alligators or lizards. But I cannot handle snakes or piranhas. I also can't really watch scary movies. My parents think I have anxiety and stuff. So, like after I watch a scary movie where people are murdered or killed by monsters, for the next week, or two, or three, I'll be thinking that I'm going to die and stuff. Yeah, it gets annoying._

Lol. You can handle alligators? I can't. I understand handling lizards, but alligators? You're braver than me. xD Congrats, killer bunnies!

Enjoy!

**Chapter 53: Last Time**

When Bryant swore heavily, my eyes shot open. I scanned my body, realizing I was completely unharmed. What happened? A dud? Did he run out of ammo? Whatever happened, luck was on my side. Bryant suddenly chucked the gun at me and it just barely hit my shoulder. I winced and jerked away. Bryant was trying to stand up again. I didn't waste any more time.

"Daphne, I'm going to get you!" Bryant shouted at me.

I sprinted for the door, in my socks, a pair of boxers, and my shirt. Ariana had left it open so I didn't stop as I burst through it. Instead of feeling free, I felt pain as I ran into someone roughly. I screamed and my eyes shot open as I staggered backwards, coming face-to-face with Sage. My scream abruptly stopped, and I gasped.

"Sage! I thought—" I choked out, caught up with emotion.

"No time to explain now Daphne," Sage cut me off, looking over me. "We've got to go— Daphne, where are your pants?"

"Uh…"

"Never mind," Sage said quickly, grabbing my wrist. "We've got to go now. The cops will be here any second."

Together we hurried for Sage's car, which was running and ready to go. My mind was racing. Sage was alive? But how? He had been shot! I didn't even see any blood on him!

"In the car," Sage demanded, hurrying to the driver's seat.

I opened the door to the back, finding Mr. Firay sprawled out over the seats. Being as gentle as possible I raised his head and slid in, placing his head down in my lap. Sage hopped into the front and slammed on the gas.

"Here," Ariana said breathlessly, turning and tossing me her sweatshirt as Sage floored it. "Do I even want to know where your pants are?"

"Nope."

I caught the sweatshirt and lifted up Mr. Firay's head again, pushing the sweatshirt between his head and my lap before setting his head down again. The gash on his forehead caught my attention again and I felt my heart start to pound faster again. I gently placed my hand on the side of his forehead without any wounds.

"How'd you guys escape?" I asked.

Ariana turned to grin at me. "It's a good thing I had a bobby pin."

"You picked the lock?"

"I'm not totally useless," Ariana commented with a shrug.

I couldn't help but grin at her. "Nope. And thank goodness you're not. Now… Sage, how are you so okay after being shot?" I asked, turning to look at Sage.

He turned and smirked at me. "Didn't I tell you I had a few tricks up my sleeve?"

"Eyes on the road!" Ariana commanded, making Sage roll his eyes.

"Bulletproof vest," Sage answered the question I was about to ask. "It wasn't like I was unprepared."

I raised an eyebrow. "So… wait. You were just randomly wearing a bulletproof vest?"

Sage laughed. "No, I just had a bad feeling this morning, so I put it on."

"You're weird."

"It saved my life, didn't it?"

I smiled slightly. "Yeah, it did. That really scared me though."

"I could tell from your voice," Sage commented, sounding amused. "Sage! Sage!" he mimicked in a high-pitched tone.

A blush made its' way onto my face and I glared at the back of Sage's head. "It's not funny! I really was worried about you!"

"I know," Sage told me, all playfulness gone. "Thank you."

I lowered my gaze. "You don't need to thank me…" The large gash on Mr. Firay's head suddenly caught my vision, making me suck in a quick breath. "What are we going to tell the hospital?"

Sage glanced at me through the rear-view window. "For Matt? My plan was to say that he was in his shed, slipped, and landed on a shovel."

I stared at Sage. "You're kidding."

Sage shook his head. "Nope."

"But that's so… That's so unlike Mr. Firay!"

"I know," Sage commented with a grin.

A small laugh escaped my lips, but I immediately shut my mouth. This wasn't the time to be laughing. Even though we had escaped Bryant, Mr. Firay was still seriously injured. Who knew if he'd even wake up?

A small groan emitted from the man, contradicting my thoughts and making my heart skip a beat. I brought my head closer to Mr. Firay's, holding my breath. Had I just been imagining things?

"Mr. Firay?" I asked quietly. "Can you hear me?"

Mr. Firay made another groaning noise, and his eyes fluttered open. For a split second we made eye contact, until his eyes shut again. I looked up at Sage, my mouth open. Ariana was turned around in her seat, looking down at Mr. Firay with a worried expression.

"Daphne?"

My eyes snapped back down at to my lap. Mr. Firay's eyes were opened again.

"Daphne?" he repeated.

"It's me," I whispered, feeling my eyes fill up with tears.

Mr. Firay raised his right arm, pressing his hand to my face. He cupped my cheek, and ran his thumb back and forth over the skin. We hit a bump in the road and he winced, letting out a groan of pain, dropping his hand onto his chest.

"Are you okay?" I asked quickly.

"Are _you _okay?" he responded, his voice quiet.

I smiled down at him, blinking the tears out of my vision. "I'm okay. More okay than you at least…"

Mr. Firay swallowed, shutting his eyes again. "Bryant…"

"Bryant's back at the warehouse. The police will find him," I told him.

"I wanted to protect you."

Mr. Firay's voice cracked and I stared down at him, startled. Since when did Mr. Firay's voice ever crack? Once again I felt the overwhelming urge to cry. I gripped Mr. Firay's hand in mine. Clenching my jaw, I shook my head at him vigorously.

"Mr. Firay, you did protect me," I whispered, squeezing his hand. "Even though you weren't absolutely sure Bryant had me or not, you still went to help me. And you tried to fight him, even though you were heavily injured. I'm so sorry I didn't tell you earlier I was receiving texts from him. We could have avoided this all together. I'm sorry," I repeated, letting tears spill down my face again.

Mr. Firay opened his eyes again, gazing at me with piercing eyes. "How is it you're crying when I'm the one who wants to?"

"We all know it's not humanly possible for you to cry," Sage commented, making my heart leap into my throat.

A blush quickly appeared on my face. It had totally escaped my mind that Sage and Ariana were still in the car! I kept my gaze fixed on the button to the window, embarrassment making me hot. Mr. Firay chuckled.

"There's the blush I love," he commented quietly. "That's much better than the tears. Much more fitting, Daphne."

I blushed darker, making Mr. Firay chuckle again.

"As much as I love hearing your sappy talk, we're almost at the hospital. Daphne, would you mind telling Matt what he's going to tell the doctors?"

I glared at Sage, who was smirking. He would make me tell Mr. Firay that. "You, um… were in your barn and you slipped, and fell on a shovel," I muttered, unable to look Mr. Firay in the eye.

"What?"

"You were in your barn—"

"I heard what you said," Mr. Firay snapped, irritation dripping in his voice. "Whose stupid idea was that?"

Sage whistled from the front. "Not mine."

"Yes it was," Ariana and I said together.

Mr. Firay groaned. "That's the lamest thing I've ever heard. Isn't there something else?"

Sage glanced at Mr. Firay through the rear-view mirror. "Can you think of anything? Or do you want to go with, 'oh, I got hit over the head by a shovel while I wasn't looking and I was knocked out for a few hours. Then I was punched in the same place.'?"

Mr. Firay scowled. "Bryant… That bastard. He used such a dirty trick."

"Mr. Firay, you should just go with the shovel excuse," Ariana interjected. "I think I speak for us all when I say we just want to make this as simple as possible."

"Fine," Mr. Firay responded grumpily. "I guess it's okay that the hospital has a few Everafter doctors –we wouldn't want to make them worry either."

Just then a police car whizzed by us, its' lights flashing and sirens wailing. Ariana and I exchanged startled glances. Sage tightened his grip on the steering wheel and kept driving. Seconds later another cop car flashed by.

"Hopefully Bryant is still there," I murmured, turning my head to look out the back. "Maybe this will be an end to everything…"

We arrived at the hospital in no time. Sage drove straight up to the entrance, shutting off the car and hopping out of it. He went around to the back, and helped Mr. Firay out of the car. I climbed out too, going to help Ariana. Sage nudged me in the shoulder before I could start walking towards the building

"Daphne," I heard Mr. Firay start, anger in his voice. "Where are your pants?"

I blushed heavily, feeling self-conscious. It had slipped my mind that I wasn't wearing pants or shoes. "I'll explain later, Mr. Firay." I really didn't want to tell him what happened right now.

"Daphne, tell me."

"Later, it's nothing bad," I assured him. "For now, let's just go in the hospital."

"Give me Ariana, you take Matt," Sage suddenly ordered, making me look at him in surprise.

"But—"

Sage shook his head. "No protesting." With that, he forced Mr. Firay to put an arm around me, and unlatched Ariana's arm from me, putting an arm around her waist to support her.

I struggled under Mr. Firay's weight. "Mr. Firay… Could you support yourself a little more?"

"Daphne, go over there," Mr. Firay ordered, pointing to the corner of the building. "Around the corner."

I turned my head slightly to look at Mr. Firay. "What? Why? We need to get you in right now—"

Mr. Firay sighed. "Daphne, just go. Now."

I scowled, but obeyed Mr. Firay, shooting a look at Sage. He raised an eyebrow, watching as I staggered off to the edge of the building. Mr. Firay slowly took on more of his own weight, still keeping a tight grasp on me. He ordered me to go around the corner. I did as he said.

"Are you okay?"

I looked at Mr. Firay in surprise. He forced me to drag him all the way over her so he could ask me if I was okay? "I'm fine…"

"I'm sorry, Daphne," Mr. Firay apologized suddenly, raising his right hand to my face, cupping my cheek. "This will be the last time."

"Last time for what—"

Mr. Firay suddenly leaned in closer to me, and I could smell his cologne as I inhaled sharply from the sudden proximity. A hint of a smirk played at his lips before he pressed them against mine softly. For a moment I was frozen in shock, my eyes wide, my heart stopping. Then Mr. Firay cupped my neck with his free hand, and I let myself relax into the kiss, my heart jump-starting again, and my eyes closing. His lips were slightly chapped, but surprisingly soft as they moved against mine. Shoving my embarrassment to the side, I brought my arms around him and pulled myself closer, my head feeling light. All too soon he pulled away, staring at me for a moment. Our gazes locked, and I blushed under the intensity of his piercing eyes.

My mind was blank. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't form a coherent thought. Mr. Firay kissed me— and not for blackmail, or because he was fever dreaming. I opened my mouth to speak, but Mr. Firay shook his head, bringing his lips to mine again, this time a little bit harder. There was an acrid taste to his kiss, but I ignored it for the time being, bringing my hand up to his head to run it through his hair. Suddenly he pulled away, hissing in pain, dropping his hands away from my face.

I abruptly stepped away from him, my heart pounding from the kiss. "A-are you okay?"

Mr. Firay pressed a hand to his forehead. "I'm okay." His eyes slid out of focus for a minute and he winced.

"We should bring you in now," I said, looking at him in concern. "You're looking pale…"

Mr. Firay stared at me for a moment, his lips pursed. "I'm not done."

I blushed, knowing what he meant. "Mr. Firay, um, I just— You need medical attention."

"You don't want me to kiss you again?"

"No!" I said quickly. "I do! B-but you need— and you're still bleeding a-and you—"

Mr. Firay chuckled, putting a hand to my lips again. "You're so cute when you're flustered." Then he leaned forward again, and for a second I thought he was going to kiss me again, but instead he nodded, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Okay, let's go back."

I nodded, letting him wrap an arm around me again. That was the last time I would ever refuse to kiss Mr. Firay. As I took the first step back to the front of the hospital I froze, my heart jumping into overdrive as my brain finally registered Mr. Firay's earlier words.

_This will be the last time_.

"Mr. Firay…"

"Hmm?"

I clutched him tightly, feeling my hands shaking. "You're not going to… leave, are you?" I whispered.

Mr. Firay's eyes widened in surprise. "What?"

"You said that would be the last time," I pointed out, feeling anxious.

Mr. Firay stared at me for a moment, before sighing. "Daphne—"

I shook my head. "No! Mr. Firay! I've said before I don't are how dangerous it is! I know I'm being selfish, but…"

Mr. Firay put a hand to my lips. "I'm being selfish, Daphne."

I gave him a questioning look.

"I didn't mean that would be the last time I'd kiss you," he told me, amusement shining in his eye for a moment. "I meant that would be that last time I'd kiss you without your permission."

Relief washed through me immediately, and I started laughing. Mr. Firay removed his hand from my mouth.

"Daphne, I know I probably shouldn't say this, but even though you're in danger by being with me, I don't want you to stay away," Mr. Firay admitted. "It's selfish, but it's how I feel. I've always been a selfish man, anyway."

Ariana and Sage entered my vision again, waiting patiently by the front of the hospital.

"I wouldn't go even if you forced me," I assured Mr. Firay quietly. "Trust me."

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Alright."

Sage wagged his eyebrows at me as we grew closer. I did my best to keep my face composed.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I demanded when we were close enough.

Sage smirked. "What went on back there?"

"We had a quick chat," I lied, feeling my face heat up. Luckily it was dark, so I didn't think Sage noticed.

"Uh-huh," Sage commented. "Sure…"

"Never mind," I said quickly. "Let's just get Mr. Firay and Ariana checked out."

"Umm, Daphne?" Ariana started, sounding like she was going to laugh.

"What?"

"I don't think you should go in the hospital," she told me. "You're in your underwear, remember?"

For the billionth time that night, I felt my face flushing. Sage started laughing, looking down at my boxer-clad bottom half.

"Stop staring!" I cried, crossing my legs. "Sage! You pervert!"

Sage continued laughing, but did look away. "Daphne, you should probably wait in the car. I can handle Matt and Ariana."

Begrudgingly, I handed Mr. Firay off to Sage. "Fine," I grumbled.

"Give me your car keys."

Sage dug out his car keys and tossed them to me. "Don't go anywhere."

"I won't," I promised him. "I just don't want to freeze."

Sage ran his eyes to my legs again, smirking. "Well, maybe if you kept your pants on—"

"Shut up!"

"Ow!" Sage cried as Mr. Firay slammed his fist into Sage's shoulder.

"Bring me in the damn hospital," Mr. Firay muttered. "My head is killing me."

"Yes, your highness," Sage responded. "See you soon, Daphne."

"Bye," I responded flatly.

Sage feigned a hurt look.

"Stay safe," Mr. Firay said, his eyes piercing into mine.

I nodded, swallowing nervously. "I hope everything goes okay with your head."

"Nothing's ever okay with his head," Sage commented in a singsong voice.

Mr. Firay slammed him in the shoulder again. "Shut up and move."

**A/N. **Okay, I thought I should also mention –if you didn't catch it- that the hospital they're going to has Everafter doctors, so they won't have any problem dealing with anything like, "From checking this guy's back, he has wings! CALL THE ZOO!" or something from a human doctor. ^^

Oh, and Daphne never retrieved the wand from the ground *wiggles fingers mysteriously*. Keep that in mind for a later chapter.

Anyways, kisss? ;D C'mon, I'm at least hoping for a comment on that.

**REPLY TO AVRIL-GRIMM: **Eleni, right? Well, anyways, it's a bit rude to post a review on someone else's story promoting yourself. So, don't keep writing, "Hey guys! Check out my poll/profile!" (I can't remember what you wrote :3) on someone's story because…well, it's just not right. Hopefully you're not mad after reading this, but I noticed you wrote that same message for Curlscat's NGHC, so yeah. ^^ Thanks for the review anyways!

Anon. Replies:

killer bunnies: Nope. I was, too. XD I'm glad you liked those moments! Hahaha, thanks! I was tired last night, so I thought, "Daphne's going to lose her pants." XDD For the record, he didn't shoot Daphne. He was going to, but he ran out of bullets. Wow, a lot of fears. Congrats on winning the QofW! True. I'm going on a cruise with my family and friends for April. xD It's going to be awesome –the only thing I hope doesn't happen is the ship sinking. ^^ Thanks for your review! Aw, that's sweet. :D You're awesome!

PenguinLoverGurl: Lol. xD Oh, wow! Hahah. XD I'm glad he got what he deserved –but then again, it was a prank. :3 Aw, thanks! That means a lot to me –really? More words and quicker than MB? You sure? :D I love him, too. AHH! THAT'S CREEPY –well, I guess I can't really say that because my friend did that once, but I think the boy ran away, lol. I'm not allowed to have a boyfriend until _college_. I can't even go out on double dates 'til…later. Around highschool, but I'm not really sure which year. Aw, well, that'd be cool if you guys came down to Naples or something. XD Nope! :D Oh, what army? Thanks! ^^

Any errors or confusions –please tell me! I might've missed something –I haven't proof-read this. :3 Thanks!

Um, I have to sleep now. D: At least tomorrow is a half-day for school! Yayyy! **Next update is Friday!**

~Lara


	54. Chapter 54:

**A/N. **Last time (I probably announced it on Ch. 52) I updated, 20 minutes later did I get the first review. Chapter 53, however, got me my first reviewer WITHIN 10 MINUTES. Holy...Roman Empire! You guys are like *snaps fingers* that, aren't you? Wow, I'm really happy. Thanks, you guys! ^^ You've brightened my week.

Another topic to talk about... Guess what my hairstyle is right now? It's braided loosely, on my right shoulder. ^^ Heehee, and my hair looks brown -I'm an Asian Katniss. :3 The real topic: **Who's ready for the Hunger Games?** I'm not! ^^ I haven't read all of book 1 yet, so I can't watch the movie (Rules Of Reading XD I took an oath). But it's funny -I already know so much from what my friends have accidentally blurted out. :) Anyways, for those seeing it this weekend (or saw it this morning), enjoy! I bet it'll be (or was) great! ^^ Peeta FTW! (Josh Hutcherson to be more specific :3)

(Lol, I wrote that above, maybe Monday night, and now my dad says we can see it tonight if there's a way for us to still get tickets [it's probably sold out, but he says he'll try]. YAAY!)

QotW: What is the first meal that Katniss and Gale eat at the beginning of the first HG book? (I also have a QotW for those who haven't read all of HG or not at all) If you were stuck on a deserted island and only had one thing with you, what would you have?

Chapter 54! Sorry there won't be any DxMSeed fluff in this one. Next chapter -yes. :) Really cheesy like last chapter (CHEESE OVERLOAD!) but that'll be posted Sunday as per usual!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 54: Phone-y Business <strong>(Hardy Har Har)

When I woke up, I felt overheated. I stretched, yawning widely. My eyes shot open went I touched something— or someone warm. I sat up quickly, looking around at my surroundings. I was definitely not at home. There was a lump next to me, a person sleeping under the covers.

My mind was racing. What happened last night? After Mr. Firay, Sage, and Ariana had disappeared into the hospital I had gone back to Sage's car… and then what? I couldn't remember. When had I fallen asleep? I looked around the room again and realized with a jolt where I was.

Mr. Firay's house. So that meant…

Gripping the comforter tightly, I whipped it off the person next to me. When I noticed it was Sage, not Mr. Firay, I shrieked, moving away from him. His eyes shot open, and he bolted up, looking around widely.

"Where's the fire?" he shouted, his messy chestnut hair everywhere, covering parts of his face.

"There is no fire!" I cried, grabbing a pillow and pulling it to my chest. "What are you doing in the same bed as me?"

Sage looked at me in confusion for a few seconds. "Daphne?"

"That's me," I snapped, feeling my face heat up. "What are you doing in my bed?"

"Actually," a new voice commented, "I do believe that's _my_ bed."

My head snapped in the direction of the doorway, where Mr. Firay was standing. He had large, white bandages wrapped around the top of his head, and a deep blue bruise under his left eye. He raised an eyebrow at me, taking a sip from the coffee cup in his hand.

"What…?" I trailed off, unsure of what I was about to ask.

Sage bounded out of Mr. Firay's bed, hopping to his feet. "Morning, Matt!"

Mr. Firay gave Sage a hard look. "It's afternoon."

I climbed out of the bed as well, detangling myself from the sheets. Mr. Firay smirked at me as I did so. I was about to ask him what he thought was so amusing when I looked down and noticed I was still in the boxers I was in last night. Flushing in embarrassment I quickly yanked the sheet off his bed and wrapped it around me.

"Ariana and Wendell are coming with clothing for you soon," Mr. Firay informed me.

"Ariana and Wendell?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "We have a lot of explaining to do with Ariana… And we have a few other things to discuss."

"Like what?" I asked, narrowing my eyes in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Mr. Firay ignored my question. "Want some breakfast?"

My stomach rumbled as if on cue, and I blushed again, causing Mr. Firay and Sage to chuckle.

"It's almost ready," Mr. Firay informed me.

"Then… can I take a quick shower?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "Sure. You can grab some clothing out of my dresser if you want," he informed me. "That way you won't be changing back into dirty clothes."

"Aw, you two share clothes?" Sage teased, grinning. "That's cute."

Mr. Firay jammed his elbow into Sage's side. "Shut up. Go check on the bacon."

Sage grumbled, but left the room. Mr. Firay stayed in the doorway, taking another sip from his mug.

"Um, what happened last night?"

Another amused smile appeared on Mr. Firay's face. "Well, it was around four in the morning when they finished fixing me up, and you were asleep in the car when we finally made it out, so we didn't wake you up. Ariana went home, but Sage called your mother and told her you were staying here for the night."

I had to remember to thank Sage for calling my mom. I didn't want her having a heart attack because I was missing. "Okay… So why was I in the same bed as Sage?"

Mr. Firay scowled. "I don't know. He was supposed to be sleeping on the couch."

"Oh, so he snuck in," I commented, rolling my eyes. "That's just like him. Where'd you sleep?"

"Couch in the living room," Mr. Firay told me grumpily. "I have to be careful not to let my head bump into anything."

"What did the doctors say?"

Mr. Firay shrugged. "I just needed some stitches, and I guess I have a minor concussion. No big deal. I've had worse."

"Oh." He's had worse? "Wait! You're a fairy! Can't you do that cocoon thing that Puck did when his wings were ripped out?"

He gave me a flat look. "Didn't you _smell _the stench that he had as a sac? I don't want that to happen me, and I don't think you'd enjoy it if I was following you around like a lost puppy, smelling like a garbage disposal."

I cracked a smile. "That's true."

"Besides," he continued. "There are other ways of healing without magic–albeit slower, but it heals. Although, one of the Everafter doctors did give me some magic salve."

"Oh," was all I said. Of course he didn't have to go into a cocoon to heal.

"Want to take a shower now?"

I nodded my head quickly. "Yeah." Warm, relaxing water was just what I needed right now.

Twenty minutes later I heard a knock on the bathroom door. A frown appeared on my face, thinking it was Mr. Firay telling me it was time to get out. When I heard a different voice I blinked in surprise.

"Daphne? I've got your clothes," Wendell yelled through the door. "I'm coming in."

"What? Wendell stay out!" I cried, pulling the shower curtain more securely across the rod.

Wendell ignored my demands, and I heard the door open. Footsteps filled the room and I heard Wendell cough. "Muggy enough in here?"

"I like my showers hot," I responded simply, staying as far away from the curtain as possible. "Get out."

"Is Daphne done in the shower now? I have to go to the bathroom," a new voice asked, and I heard another pair of feet in my bathroom.

"Nope."

"Oh," Sage responded. "Daphne, do you mind if I just go—"

I wrenched the top of the shower curtain open, sticking only my head out to glower at the boys by the sink. "Yes. You two. Out. Now."

"What are you guys doing in here?"

My eyes went past Sage and Wendell to the door, where Ariana and Mr. Firay were now standing. Ariana looked like she was about to start laughing while Mr. Firay's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and then he glared at Sage. Sage held up his hands.

"I didn't know she was in here, dude."

"Get out!" Mr. Firay and I ordered at the same time.

Sage winced. "Oh, double teamed. I'm going, I'm going," he said, holding up his hands. "Come on, Wendell."

Wendell shrugged, placing my clothing on the sink counter. "Sure."

Mr. Firay locked gazes with me for a moment. "Make sure to lock the door when you take a shower in the future," he suggested before closing the door.

I blushed, pulling my head back under the spray of hot water. Did that mean he planned on me taking more showers here? The thought brought a smile to my face. I turned off the shower and slipped out, drying and dressing myself quickly.

Sage, Wendell, Ariana, and Mr. Firay were all in the living room when I finally finished getting ready. Wendell was in the recliner, Sage and Ariana on the couch, and Mr. Firay on the other couch. Mr. Firay gestured for me to take a seat next to him. After a moment of hesitation I went to the couch and took a seat, sitting as far from Mr. Firay as possible. With Ariana, Sage, and Wendell here, it was sure to be awkward enough.

"So," Sage said, clapping his hands together. "To save us trouble today, I've already explained everything about the gang problem to Ariana."

Wendell and I stared at Sage in horror. Ariana grinned from her seat next to him.

"I'm so sorry Ariana!" I apologized quickly. "I know it was mean to hide in from you, and I feel really guilty for lying and I totally understand if you don't want to be best friends anymore."

Sage, Ariana, and Wendell gave me strange looks.

"I don't blame you for hiding this from me," Ariana told me slowly. "It's not really a big deal…"

"Oh," I responded, feeling my face heat up. "I… I see…"

Mr. Firay snickered and I glared at him. He held up his hand, turning his snicker into a cough.

"My head injury causes me to cough," he told me.

"Sure it does."

"Ariana we kept it a secret so you wouldn't get hurt," Wendell told her. "Which didn't really work, but still."

Ariana laughed. "Guys, chill. It's fine. I understand. I would have never guessed you guys would be involved with a gang though. Or that Mr. Firay was an ex-gangster."

Mr. Firay shrugged. "That means I'm good at keeping it a secret."

"Except for the part where Daphne found out," Ariana responded. "Way to keep your secrecy there."

"That wasn't my fault."

"But it still happened."

Mr. Firay scowled at Ariana. "I like you better in class."

"Daphne likes you all the time."

"Ariana!" I cried, staring at her incredulously.

Sage burst out laughing, clapping Ariana on the back. "That was a good one!" Even Wendell cracked a wide grin.

"Guys," Mr. Firay started, looking stern, but sounding amused. "Let's keep on topic, shall we?"

Sage nodded. "Okay. I have the news on right now, and I'll have it on all day too. You guys make sure to watch it every time you get the chance too."

"Why?" Ariana, Wendell, and I chorused.

"To see if Bryant was caught," Sage said, as if stating the obvious. "Daphne, when you and Bryant were alone last night, what happened?"

I lowered my gaze to the floor. "Nothing much… Bryant fell through the stairs."

Sage raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"I led him upstairs, and he fell through one of them," I explained. "That's how I escaped from him."

"And how exactly did you lose your pants?"

"That's… um…" Reflecting upon the moment, it seemed like a pretty stupid lucky break. My face reddened. How could I tell them I had to take off my pants to make him fall?

"Daphne?"

I turned to Mr. Firay, who was giving me an unusually concerned look. "What?"

"Did Bryant… do anything to you?"

I cocked my head to the side for a moment. Did Bryant do anything to me? It took me a moment to realize what he meant. I quickly waved my hands in front of my face. "No, no, no! I just had to take off my pants to make him fall."

Sage snorted. "Bribery?"

I glared at him. "No!"

"I was joking," Sage responded with a laugh.

"You have a bruise on your forehead," Mr. Firay interjected, shooting a dirty look at Sage. "Top right. How did that happen?"

Surprised, I raised my hand to my forehead and put pressure on it gently. When I hit the bruise, I winced. "Ow!"

Mr. Firay tried to keep his face straight, but I could tell he was holding back a smirk. "So?"

"Umm," I hesitated, thinking back. "It could have been when I tripped you're your leg… Or when Bryant threw his gun at me—"

"Bryant threw his gun at you?" Wendell interrupted. "Bryant had a _gun_?"

Ariana nodded. "He shot Sage with it."

Wendell whipped around to stare at Sage, a confused expression on his face. "You don't…"

"Bulletproof vest," Sage told Wendell with a grin. "Bet you wish you had one of those the other night."

Wendell scowled at Sage. "Shut up."

"Daphne, why did Bryant throw the gun at you?" Ariana asked curiously, turning to me. "If I was him, I would have just shot you."

"Ariana!"

She shrugged, grinning sheepishly. "What? You put yourself in his shoes. Isn't that what you'd do?"

I nodded my head begrudgingly. "Yeah, I guess I would. And he did try to shoot me… But I got lucky. Again. He ran out of bullets or something."

Sage laughed again. "That's just his luck."

"So was Bryant immobile when you left him?" Wendell asked.

"Yep. Oh, I almost gave him some burns."

"…What?"

"You know Peter Pan, right?"

Ariana grinned. "_The _Peter Pan? He was there?"

"He's not so awesome when you find out he's in a gang," Sage scoffed. "Show off, too. Talking with his stupid British accent."

"But you have a British accent, Sage," Ariana pointed out, stifling a laugh. "You just directly insulted yourself."

Sage opened his mouth, then closed it, giving a fake glare to her. "You-"

"_Anyways, _what about burns and Peter Pan?" Mr. Firay interjected, sending Sage a look.

"Somehow, he got a hold of one of our magic wands. After Sage knocked him out, I grabbed it and I had it with me when I led Bryant up the stairs. It was lucky, too. If I hadn't had the wand, Bryant might've still had me."

"So Bryant was injured and immobile, right?"

"Yep."

"There's a good chance that the police caught him, then," Wendell said.

"Yeah."

He crossed his arms. "Just in case though, I'm canceling my phone. I thought I'd get it back, but I didn't realize Bryant had it…" He narrowed his eyes accusingly at me.

I stared back at him in surprise. "What? Wendell, no! You can't cancel it!"

"Why not?"

"That's the only means of communication I have with him!"

"Which is why you need to get rid of it," Mr. Firay interjected, giving me a stern look. "The less interaction you have with Bryant, the better."

"But Mr. Firay! What if something like last night happens again? Bryant won't be able to reach me—"

Mr. Firay cut me off. "Which is a good thing."

"Not if you, Sage, Ariana, or Wendell are getting hurt!" I protested. "What if he texts Wendell's phone with a threat, and I don't receive it, and one of you gets hurt?"

Mr. Firay stayed silent, and I quickly looked around the room. Wendell, Ariana, and Sage were all giving me sober looks. Ariana chewed on the bottom of her lip, giving me a half-smile.

"Don't tell me…" I started, my eyes growing wide. "Do you guys think it's better for you to get hurt than for me just to talk to Bryant?"

"Daphne—"

I shook my head. "It's not just about me! Why don't you guys get that? Bryant isn't just after me. He's after all of us."

Mr. Firay put his hand on my shoulder, silencing me. "Daphne, none of us are going to have contact with Bryant. That way we're all safe."

I stared at Mr. Firay. "But…"

"But what, Daphne?" Wendell cried in exasperation. "There is no but!"

"It's dangerous still," I protested weakly.

Wendell shook his head. "No, it's dangerous to have contact with him. Do you want another repeat of last night?"

"No!"

"Then that's that."

I wanted to protest, but I kept my mouth shut. They didn't understand what I was trying to say. Wouldn't it be better to have a warning than something happening out of the blue? Like when Wendell got shot?

Sage sighed, putting his head on the back of the couch. "Daphne, you worry too much."

"Sorry I care," I snapped, feeling upset.

Sage shook his head. "Chances are Bryant's in jail now, so it doesn't matter. Daphne, I know you're thinking it's safer to have a warning from Bryant, but what if he lied? What if he said, for example, he has Wendell and he wants you to go to him otherwise he'll hurt Wendell, when he really doesn't have Wendell?"

I stared at Sage in confusion. "Can you repeat that?"

"Like in _Harry Potter_," Ariana interjected, looking excited. "When Vold—"

"_He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named_!" Sage hissed, looking around in mock horror.

Ariana rolled her eyes. "When He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named told Harry he had Sirius, and when Harry went to save Sirius it turned out Vold—"

"He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named," Mr. Firay joked, grinning as Sage clapped his hands over his ears.

I had the urge to laugh, but instead I just grinned. "Yeah, Ariana. The Dark Lord's name must not be said."

"Voldemort," Ariana said quickly before anyone could interrupt her again, "never had Sirius… And we both know how that ended."

My grin dropped. "Oh."

There was an awkward silence in the room now. Wendell cleared his throat quietly, and Sage started whistling the _Harry Potter_ theme song. Mr. Firay eventually joined in, and so did Ariana.

"Fine," I finally grumbled, rolling my eyes at their antics. "Wendell, shut off your phone."

"I'm doing that right after we're done here," he told me, nodding his head.

"So if Bryant actually is caught… Does that mean this whole gang problem is over and done with?" Ariana asked, furrowing her eyebrows.

I blanked at her question. That was exactly what it meant. There would be no more danger, or threats, or being paranoid. I glanced at Sage, who had the same expression I had on. He blinked at me, opening his mouth and saying nothing. Wendell was starting to grin. I turned to Mr. Firay, expecting to see a relieved expression, but instead he had a hard look.

"That's exactly what it means," Mr. Firay told Ariana, setting his jaw. "Let's hope that's what happened."

I cocked my head. "What are you…?"

"There's always the chance Bryant got away," Mr. Firay told me, confirming my thoughts.

I shook my head. "No way! He couldn't move and the cops came not even five minutes later."

Sage pursed his lips. "The chances are low, but there's still the slight possibility."

"Which is why we keep an eye on the news and the newspaper," Wendell threw in. "There'll definitely be something about the warehouse."

"Sounds easy enough," Ariana said, shrugging. "I don't usually watch TV, but once in awhile is okay."

"We shouldn't all watch the same channel," Mr. Firay commented, glancing at his T.V. "Wendell, why don't you go to your house and watch channel ten? Sage, you go watch channel three, and Ariana you watch channel five. I've got it on channel six."

Sage, Ariana, and Wendell nodded, oblivious to the fact that Mr. Firay didn't assign me a channel. Before I could ask Mr. Firay anything, Sage spoke.

"So we should do that right away," he said, pushing himself off the couch. "Ariana, give me your cell phone."

Ariana gave Sage a questioning look. "Why?"

"I need your phone number to contact you if I find something, and vice versa. I'll give you Matt's too, and then you can text Matt so he has your number," Sage explained. "Wendell, do you have a house phone?"

"I'll be picking up a new cell phone while I cancel my old one," Wendell responded, looking grumpy. "Waste of my money…"

"He has a house phone," I told Sage, shaking my head at Wendell. Didn't he know they'd replace his phone for free? "I'll text you the number."

Sage nodded. "Alright, then we are all in contact."

"Yep," the rest of us chorused.

"Then let's go," Sage ordered, clapping his hands. He turned to me. "Daphne, want a ride home with me?"

I gave him a wary look. "You drive like a maniac…"

"I'm not that bad," he protested, grinning.

"I live like, two doors down from her," Wendell told Sage. "I've got her."

Sage looked disappointed. "Fine."

I laughed. "Sorry, Sage, maybe next time."

Sage shrugged, heading towards the door. "I'll talk to you guys later," he called, waving over his shoulder.

"You ready?" Wendell asked, looking at Ariana, and then me.

"Yep," Ariana responded.

I glanced at Mr. Firay, and blinked in surprise when I found him staring intensely at me. "Um…"

He smirked. "Wendell, I have to talk to Daphne for a bit. You and Ariana go ahead, and I'll bring Daphne home after."

Wendell frowned. "Why can't you talk to her in front of us?"

Ariana rolled her eyes, shoving Wendell's shoulder, and steering him towards the door. "Shut up, Wendell. Let's go."

"But—"

"No buts," Ariana said firmly, sending me a secret smile. She winked. "Have fun, you two."

I blushed, ducking my head. If it wasn't Sage, it was Ariana. Wendell threw an apprehensive look at me but I waved him away. "Bye Wendell, bye Ari."

"I still think—" Wendell started, but Ariana kicked him.

"Keep walking," she ordered.

I grinned after them. Then the fact that Mr. Firay and I were all alone hit me, and I held my breath. This was the first time we were alone since the other night. A blush tried to make its way to my face, but I forced it away. There was nothing to be embarrassed about…

_That wasn't even a fraction of my feelings._

I quickly smacked my hands to my cheeks. I had to stop thinking. Mr. Firay was giving me a funny look when I turned to him. "Bug," I lied with a tiny smile. "So, what'd you want to talk about?"

Mr. Firay's expression suddenly turned solemn and I felt my heart drop. Immediately my palms became sweaty, and I forced myself to stay calm. His expression didn't mean anything. He hadn't even said a word yet. There was nothing to be nervous about.

"Daphne, before I start talking I want you to consider everything I say, okay?" Mr. Firay started, giving me a serious look. "No matter how you feel about it."

"O-okay," I said quietly. What did he want to talk about?

"There's two things I want to talk about," Mr. Firay told me, as if reading my thoughts. "One of them, you won't like. The second, we need to think carefully through."

I bit my lip. "Alright…"

"So do you want the bad or good first?" Mr. Firay asked with a wry grin.

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. It was better to get the worse over and done with. "Bad."

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **I have great ideas for the sequel! But because Daph and MSeed might be a couple by then...it shall be co-authored! ^^ You all know -or should know: I have no experience with real kiss scenes and whatnot. And it's hard to make it not cheesy (so I go all out cheesy. XDDD), so my friend, Jordan, shall be assisting me with the sequel. :D Though, she'll be a silent co-person-thinamajig, but if she ever has something to say, she'll say so -which is not often, lol. :D

Okay, after planning this out...the story's going to end at the beginning of May (eight or nine chapters left) -just in time for the last SG book to come out...*tears up* Goshdarnit. I'm going to flood my house once I get my copy and greedily read it. You guys better stay away from me -I might drown you all. ;D

Again, QotW(s): What is the first meal that Katniss and Gale eat at the beginning of the first HG book?

Or...

If you were stuck on a deserted island and only had one thing with you, what would you have?

See you all Sunday!

~Lara


	55. Chapter 55:

**EDIT: Wow. Turns out Doc Manager fixed the spacing. I am now offically best friends with him again. *hug***

**A/N. I am so sorry this chapter was late. **I came home at around eight, had to pack a lunch for school, had to help Hannah find her missing test that she needed to bring back to school, _and I wasn't even halfway with the chapter_. D: Hopefully you're not too mad at me.

Tsk, tsk, tsk. An hour and nine minutes just to get the first review. Darn. XD Just kidding. I'm still surprised I can get reviews fast! It used to be like a day before I got a response for a chapter. :D Thanks so much, you guys! :D

Winners of the Hunger Games QotW: mazberrypie, PenguinLoverGurl, booksonclouds, Archer Princess, Countrygirl, SweetShireen, and GrimmGirlLove! Sorry if I missed anyone! I had everyone's names down in a document, but I accidentally deleted everyone's names except for two. :P Took me awile to hunt them down, and I'm afraid I might've missed one. I was also reading HG online and my head's been going dizzy. :D

Winner of the Regular QotW: Curlscat! :D _"My thing would either be a teleport machine, a boat, or a library. Or a smartphone with its own wifi enabler." _I agree whole heartedly with that smartphone one. And everything else, basically.

Replies shall be at the bottom again. :D

More corny fluff. *cough*

**Chapter 55: Good and Bad**

Mr. Firay handed me a cup of tea. "Here. I guess I ran out of coffee."

"I want sugar," I demanded, looking at the cup of tea.

Mr. Firay gave me a flat look. "You know where it is; go get it yourself."

I pursed my lips at him. "But-"

"While you're at it, get me a spoon."

Pushing myself off the couch, I trudged into the kitchen without protesting. Mr. Firay was obviously stalling. He's the one who wanted to talk to me. Why was he making me suffer by avoiding the talk? I felt sick because of how much I wanted to know what the "bad" was. The sugar was right above the silverware drawer so I quickly grabbed it and the spoon before returning to the living room.

"Here," I told Mr. Firay, standing above him, holding out the spoon.

He reached up for the spoon, but instead of taking it, he grabbed my wrist and pulled me down next to him.

"You can sit closer; I won't bite," he told me, amusement in his voice.

I blushed, causing him to chuckle. "Mr. Firay-"

"Matt."

"Matt," I corrected myself. "What do you want to talk about?"

Mr. Firay lost his grin. "Straight to the point, huh?"

"I feel like the roles are switched," I commented, smiling slightly. "Usually I'm the one skirting around the bush."

"It's about what happens if Bryant actually did get away," Mr. Firay admitted.

I raised an eyebrow. "Why aren't we talking about this in front of everyone else? Shouldn't they know?"

"Because this is about something they don't know about," he told me. "Well, Sage might know, but I wanted him out of my house."

"Something they don't know?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "Yep,"

I frowned at him, thinking deeply. What was something Sage might know, that I knew, but Wendell and Ariana didn't? Nothing came to mind right away. "I don't know," I finally said.

"If Bryant did escape," Mr. Firay started slowly, as if choosing his words carefully, "we're going to go to the police and tell them everything."

It took a second for his words to register in my mind. When they did, I gasped, my eyes growing wide. I started to shake my head. "No, Mr. Firay. No."

"Daphne-"

"If we tell them, won't you go back to jail?"

Mr. Firay stayed silent for a moment. "There's a chance," he admitted quietly.

"Then don't-"

"Daphne, if we tell them what's going on, then Bryant will go to jail as well," Mr. Firay interrupted, giving me a stern look. "If Bryant goes to jail, this is all over."

"But at the expense of you going to jail as well!" I protested. "That's not fair!"

"It is fair, Daphne," Mr. Firay responded with a wry smile. "I was told if I got involved with the gang again, I was going back to jail. I did get involved, and what's worse: I got three teenagers involved as well."

"I'm an adult," I stated stubbornly.

"Technically, you're still a teenager," Mr. Firay said softly. "And I'm responsible for getting you involved."

I shook my head. "We aren't telling the police."

"Daphne."

"We can't!"

"Daphne, you promised me you'd at least consider it," Mr. Firay reminded me.

"There's nothing to consider!"

Mr. Firay gave me a flat look. "Yes, there is. Your safety. Sage's safety. Ariana's safety. Wendell's safety."

"Your safety," I commented quietly, lowering my gaze.

Mr. Firay nodded. "I'm not as worried about that, but yes."

"I still don't want you to go to jail," I stated sutubbornly.

"You're being selfish."

"Can't I be selfish?" I cried, turning to look at him. "Can't I be at least a little selfish? After all I've been though, I can't be selfish?"

"Yes, you could, if it wasn't for me," Mr. Firay answered, his eyes piercing into mine. "Think about everyone, not just me."

I bit my tongue. What was I doing? Putting my friends safety over Mr. Firay going to jail? I didn't want anyone to get hurt anymore, but I didn't want Mr. Firay going to jail either. How could I choose? There was no way I could!

"It's not fair," I finally said, clenching my fists.

"Daphne-"

"I cut him off. "How can I choose between you going to jail and everyone's safety?"

"Daphne, obviously you should choose everyone's safety," Mr. Firay replied, giving me a hard look. "Don't be stupid."

Tears sprung to my eyes. Now I knew how hard it was for Sabrina to make decisions for me when we were younger. Mr. Firay was right. I knew he was right. If it really came down to it, I'd know what I'd choose. "Do you hate me?"

Mr. Firay's expression became bewildered. "What?"

"You can hate me," I told him, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand. "I would choose everyone's safety over you going to jail, Mr. Firay. I'd send you to jail if that meant everyone would be safe."

"I don't hate you, Daphne."

"It'd be easier if you did," I snapped. "I don't want you to go to jail!"

Mr. Firay sighed, taking my hand into his. "I know you don't. I know it's a hard decision for you to make, too."

I sniffed, grasping his hand tightly. "How can I send the man I love to jail?"

"Daphne..."

I lifted my head up to see Mr. Firay giving me a soft look. More tears filled my vision and without any hesitation, I shifted so I could hug him. He sighed quietly again as I squeezed him hard, doing my best not to cry.

"Daphne," Mr. Firay repeated, putting his arms around me. "This is only if Bryant doesn't get caught. It's only a slight possibility."

"I know that," I told him, burying my face in his shoulder. "But I love you, Mr. Fi-Matt. I don't want you in jail. I hate myself for choosing my friends over you."

Mr. Firay gently pushed me away from him. I pulled back, staring at him in confusion. His face was only a few inches away from mine. "I love you, too," he told me, brushing a stray piece of my hair out of my face. "So please, don't cry over me, and don't hate yourself. Hopefully it won't come down to this."

Mr. Firay moved his head closer to me, sending my heart racing. Within seconds, our lips met. I closed my eyes, enjoying the soft touch of his lips, and the taste of the tea he had been drinking earlier. Once again, his lips were slightly chapped. After a moment, he suddenly froze. Confused, I pulled away from him. He was staring at the T.V. screen, looking astonished.

My heart jumped into my chest as I quickly turned around to look at the T.V. The news was on.

"No way," Mr. Firay stated, pushing away from the couch to walk over to the television. He dropped his knees in front of it, putting a hand on the side. "Holy shit."

There was Bryant.

Handcuffed.

With the police.

Running across the bottom of the screen were words I couldn't focus enough on to be able to read. My heart was pounding in my chest, watching as the police led Bryant towards the local jail.

"Suspected for attempted murder?" Mr. Firay muttered. "They must've found the same finger prints on Bryant's gun as the one that shot Wendell. Unless they were the same gun."

I staggered forwards and sagged next to the T.V. with Mr. Firay, unable to tear my gaze away from the scene. A quiet laugh escaped my lips, and then a louder one. Mr. Firay finally took his eyes off the television, glancing at me quickly. I began to giggle harder, crossing my arms over my stomach. Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow.

"You good?"

I shook my head, feeling my eyes water again.

"What's wrong?" he asked, now sounding confused. "Tell me."

I forced myself to stop laughing. Running the back of my hands over my eyes, I cleared my throat, giving Mr. Firay a crooked grin. "After all that...I really thought for a moment that Bryant would've somehow escaped the police. I thought you were going to go back to jail and for no reason. I thought we wouldn't be able to see each other. I thought-"

"Daphne, shut up and kiss me."

Before I could protest or comply, Mr. Firay grabbed my head, bringing it closer to his. For a second time, my senses were overrun by the smell of his cologne, the gentle caress of his breath, and the proximity of his face. Our lips met, a little roughly, and our teeth knocked together. I immediately pulled away, blushing.

"Sorry," I stuttered.

Mr. Firay chuckled quietly. "That was probably my fault. Let's try again." He leaned towards me again, and I stayed stock still as he kissed me, much more gently this time. After a second, he pulled away.

I pouted slighty. He never let a kiss last longer than five seconds. He smirked at my look, and then kissed me again, pulling away before I could react.

"Stop that," I demanded.

"Stop what?" he asked innocently.

I glared at him. "Pulling away before I can kiss you back."

"Like this?" he asked, quickly pecking me on the lips.

"Just like that!"

Mr. Firay cocked his head to the side, smirking again. "Well, if you don't want me to kiss you like that, why don't you kiss me?"

I stared at him in surprise. Me kiss him? My face grew hot and I looked away. Mr. Firay chuckled, putting his hands on my waist, making me jump.

"Can you do it?" he asked in a teasing tone. "I don't think you can."

I turned to glare at him again. "I-I can!"

"Prove it."

Blushing furiously, I leaned forward. Once again the scent of his alluring cologne filled my nose, and I hesitated only a second before pressing my lips to his. To make sure he wouldn't pull away, I moved my hands to the back of his head, tangling them in his hair. He responded to the kiss, moving his hands from my waist up to my back. There was a slight pain on my bottom lip, and I opened my mouth in protest. Mr. Firay wasted no time from turning the kiss into a French one. Soon enough, I was breathing heavily, trying to intake air while attached to the lips of Mr. Firay. We had definitely passed the five second mark this time.

Suddenly, Mr. Firay pushed me away, his chest rising and falling quickly. Confused, I stared at him while trying to catch my own breath. He shook his head, leaning back onto the couch.

"I wasn't expecting that," he commented, still slightly breathless. "I thought I was your first kiss?"

"You were," I told him.

"Then where'd you learn to kiss like that?" he demanded. "I've only kissed you twice before this."

I blushed. "I didn't learn anywhere..."

Mr. Firay groaned, running a hand through his hair. "This is going to be hard."

"What is?"

"Keeping myself controlled," Mr. Firay informed me. "If you can kiss like that..."

I blushed deeper, ducking my head. "Why do you need to?" I almost gasped as soon as the question left my lips. Pressing my lips together as tightly as I could, I avoided Mr. Firay's gaze. What had I just asked? _Why _had I just asked that?

A sigh left Mr. Firay's lips. "Well, that brings us to the second thing I want to talk about..."

I looked back up at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

"Daphne, I'm your teacher."

"Obviously."

Mr. Firay cracked a small grin. "You know a relationship between a student and a teacher is forbidden, right?"

"Right..."

"If we want to be together, it has to stay a secret. Only you, Sage, Ariana, Wendell, and myself can know. If anyone finds out, I'll be fired and you could be expelled."

"I already know that," I responded, frowning slightly. "But what's that got to do with..."

Mr. Firay held up his finger. "Let me finish. I don't plan to get caught, but if we did, and you and I had a more...intimate relationship, I'd probably go to jail."

"Intimate like...?"

"Physical," Mr. Firay responded awkwardly.

Immediately, my face felt like it was on fire. I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out -my mind had gone completely blank. I should've known what Mr. Firay meant! Now it was awkward. I struggled to think of something to say. "I-Uh, I...Right. I gotcha," I muttered, ducking my head. "I don't...I don't need..." I wanted to shoot myself. It wasn't that embarrassing!

"We'll be careful. At least until you graduate," Mr. Firay continued, smirking at my awkwardness. "Then we can openly be a couple...If you want to."

I looked at him in surprise. "Of course I want to! Why if?"

Mr. Firay hesitated for a moment, suddenly looking unsure. He pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "Daphne..."

A frown slowly appeared on my face. Mr. Firay was using his "I-have-something-to-say-and-you-might-not-like-it" voice. I hated that voice. I glanced up at him warily. "Yeah?

Mr. Firay abruptly looked away from me, mumbling something so fast that I couldn't catch it. I squinted at him, cocking my head to the side. "What?"

"Are you sure that you want to be with me?" he repeated more clearly, sounding embarrassed.

"Huh?"

"I'm not repeating it again," he snapped, hunching his shoulders.

I shook my head vehemently. "No! I heard you. Why would you ask that? Of course I want to..." I trailed off.

"Even though I'm a lot older than you?"

"If Sabrina and Puck can do it, so can we. A few thousand years is nothing," I assured him, surprised to see such an insecure air about him.

"And you don't care about my past?"

"Not at all."

"And you don't care that I used you as a replacement for the other Daphne in the beginning?"

I cocked my head to the side. "No...Why are you asking all these questions?"

Mr. Firay kept his head away from me. "I have my doubts too, you know."

Sage's words suddenly whizzed through my head. _While you doubt yourself, Matt probably doubts himself as well. _I bit my lip to keep myself from smiling. Sage was right. I wasn't the only one who had doubts. Mr. Firay had just seemed so sure of himself, it didn't seem like he had any doubts. While I was doubting myself, Mr. Firay was probably thinking the same things.

"Sage told me I should tell you them," he muttered, running a hand through his hair. "It really doesn't suit me..."

I shook my head. "Not at all."

Mr. Firay looked at me again, frowning slightly. I smiled at him. "Sage said the same thing to me before. That's why I blurted out all those bad things about me-"

"Good things," Mr. Firay corrected.

I rolled my eyes. "Sure, but my point is that if you hadn't said you had doubts, I wouldn't know."

"I don't mind."

"I want you to tell me any time you have doubts," I insisted. "It's not fair for you to have to put with me all the time."

Mr. Firay smiled slightly. "I don't put up with you. But, since I'm throwing away my machismo right now, I have one more doubt that I'd like to ask you about..."

"What?"

"You don't care that I'm a lying, devil fairy of a teacher?" Mr. Firay asked, a smirk playing across his features. So much for the insecure air.

My cheeks blazzed, remembering that old nickname. How had he known? I don't...I don't mind."

"Good," he responded. "I wouldn't let you go, anyways. I'm a shameless man, Daphne."

"Which is fine, Mr. Firay," I responded with a grin.

He smiled smugly at me. "So, do you want to be my girlfriend?"

I stared at him in surprise, taken aback by his forwardness. Had Puck been this forward to Sabrina? Another blush spread across my face and I looked away from him. "Yes," I finally murmured.

"On one condition then."

My head snapped up so fast there was a tiny snap as it cricked. I winced, rubbing it with my hand. "Condition?" I repeated incredulously.

"It's nothing much," he assured me with a shrug.

I frowned. "What is it?"

"From now on, you have to call me Matt."

I blinked. "That's it?"

"That's it," responded with a nod. "Easy, right?"

"That's too easy, Mr. Firay!" I responded with a laugh. Then I realized what I said and pressed my lips together tightly.

Mr. Firat snickered, smirking again. "Too easy, huh, Daphne?"

I scowled. "Just you wait."

**A/N. OH MY EFFIN PUCK. I'm about to go insane. I mean it. I have never spent such a long time on a computer just WRITING A CHAPTER. It's driven me nuts. I have no idea how MB can do this. He must be some super human. -_- MUST. SLEEEEPPP.**

There you go! Not much of a cliffy, right? ^^ Hopefully this can keep you guys still until Friday. Or Thursday.

Review Replies:

(Chapter 54)

Ftft3: First, nice username. ;D Second, lol! No, actually, it's kind of ironic -I imagine Ariana as Victoria Justice. XD It's funny that they're both on the same show, but Ariana from FTFT looks like Tori Vega. :D Thanks for the review!

killer bunnies: I'm glad you liked the funny parts. :D Thanks! Well, I hope this chapter gave you your answers. :D Oooh, me too -just because my phone is like my link to FanFiction...besides the computer. :D

PenguinLoverGurl: Lol, really? Cool. And correct! :D JH is awesome. :) YAY! A person like me! Oh, sheez -with PJO? Man, that must've been horrible. The movie and book were pretty far off... :D Aw, thank you! LOL! HDU back at you!

(Chapter 53)

PenguinLoverGurl: Oh, wow! That's awesome! _But you need to go to the Philippines. _You're not really Filipino until you get to go there. ;D REALLY? My grandma's house just got rebuilt -it looks fancy shmancy. And there's _two _bathrooms now! Yaya! No more having to walk all the way downstairs to go! :D Thanks!...Man, you're so going into my favorite reviewers list. :D That could be universal if it went like this, "Yes, I'm a happy, mega-reader! And I love to come review!" :D Thanks again!

killer bunnies: Me too. :D Sage is really an older, non-Everafter Puck that's British and looks like Josh Hutcherson. :D Lol -so true. I'm glad you liked the kiss...OMG! THOSE *wags eyebrows*! I almost forgot about them! *wags eyebrows* That's alright -we all have fears. :D Geez, did you have to say that? Now I'm having pre-cruise jitters. :D I don't think I'm going to die if that happens -I can swim. :D But it would sosuck if I lost all my belongings...But because I won't be going until the first week of April or so, I can pack a water resistent backpack. :)

Countrygirl: Thanks! Oh, and Sage was acting. :D He's good at that.

**Splutter, splutter, splutter! **Okay, so on Wattpad, there's this author I've fanned,** justgrace**, so all alerts that tells me when she's updated goes to me. A few months ago, she started a boyxboy story called Love Like Woe, and I don't really like boyxboy (except Hetalia. That's an exception because there's less than 1% of girl countries), so I've never bothered to read it. I got another alert and my eyes almost bulged out of their sockets when I read the chapter title: **Oberon**. And I was like, "WHOA!" So I just _had _to click on the link to the story. And boy was I shocked. On Wattpad, you can have a "Cast List" for your story and this is what it said:

_Tom Felton as Theo Frost (Puck's Love Interest)_

_Logan Lerman as Puck Cainly_

_Labrador Puppy as Oberon_

I totally had a WTPUCK? moment. Really. I did. By the way, the story wasn't a FanFiction -s'posed to be an original story, and the names Puck and Oberon were only based on AMSD. But yeah. And then I checked out the summary. Apparently, this "Puck Archibald Cainly" wants to get 'laid' because he wants to get it over with and thinks he's with this girl named Palmela or something. He looks at the bed he was in and finds out it was a guy. O.O Thank goodness we know Puck_ Goodfellow _would never do this to our dear Sabrina. XD But yeah -surprising, huh?

Wow. Long A/N. Welp, that's it for Sunday -I'm so tired. I had to babysit THREE kids younger than ten. A seven year old, eight year old, and nine year old. DX

**I know the spacings weird –IT MUST BE- and there must be tons of errors. I'm so sorry. I'm tired. I need sleep. I promise I shall fix. D:**

**'Til Friday!**

~Lara


	56. Chapter 56:

**A/N. **It was around 7:15 PM today that I realized today I was supposed to update. I really had a panic attack. I was screaming at myself, "_Oh my Puck –if I have to write a chapter in two hours again, I will die literally!" _Then I realized I had written almost over half of the chapter Sunday. :3 I felt better, lol. So…yeah, I feel better now. :D

Imma gonna die happily.

**We've reaches over 780 reviews.** So close to 800. I think this story might end in the 890s, but unless I get a splurge of new readers, I'm not getting to 1,000. So, if you want one of my stories to get over 1,000 reviews _for the first time_ -pun intended, then mind spreading the word to your friends and getting them hooked on this? It'd be...awesome. And you know what? Like Ayns and Sky did, **I will give a shoutout to every single reviewer**I got (so I should start writing them all down now :3)! A challenge -yes. But, you guys are worth it. :) Really. You've helped me come a long way. I'll be grateful if most of you come back for the sequel! ^^

By the way, **the 777th reviewer** was...**booksonclouds!** Yaaarrr! **You get four spoiler questions!**WHOOHOO! That's right -ask me any four questions (most questions seem to be answerable ^^) and I shall answer them truthfully! Or you can have another prize. No one-shots though. Sorry. They're just hard to do when you're busy. :3 But congrats! ^^

Contrary to all this happiness, I found out that like half of my grade at my school are either a) moving out of the state b) moving out of the country, or c) moving out of the school only. You guys remember my friend, Ariana (I think I've mentioned her a few times before...)? She's moving to this mega-ultra-rich school. She and her parents just decided this, like, Sunday. You should have seen my face. I was so close to tears. And she emotionally kicked me in the chest, saying, "I'm so happy to be getting out of this poor excus of a school next year." The people who are moving are kind of taking things for granted. I mean, some kids CAN'T go to school and they're just blowing the school I go to off for no reason. It makes my eyes all misty. And finding out that so many of the people I grew up with (random names ahead) like Ariana, Sam, Donovan, Luke, Drew, Mark, and most likely a few more girls (because Ariana was the only girl named) were leaving...finding it out in ONE FRICKIN MORNING...I also watched a video on Jesus' crucifixion in Religion...I literally, bursted into tears. But no one saw because of my thankfully long hair. So...yeah. I'm sad. It's time like these when I wish FF was a REAL community, and we all lived in one place, and each section was sectioned by "anime, book, tv, etc." until they got so small that the streets were to be named after a book or somewhat, and there was a Sisters Grimm Lane that we lived in... And if we wrote for multiple fandoms, we could have other houses on those streets too (like condos)...

All right. I'm done being depressed. I think. My mom even said I might not be able to go to the high school I want because it's too far...

*Sage slaps me* GET YOURSELF TOGETHER, GIRL. STOP DOUBTING YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO GO TO FM HIGH AND THAT YOU WON'T SEE YOUR FRIENDS AGAIN. OR ELSE. I'LL LEAVE THE SEQUEL.

No you can't!

Sage: Then stop doubting, or else I'll have to tickle you.

I'm done being sad! ^^' *eyes Sage in the corner* All righty! Maybe when I'm older, we can do like an SG meet -OMG, that'd be awesome. :) Anyways, I need to get back to the chapter...

And more importantly, we need to get back to Mr. Firay and Daphne. *wage eyebrows* GOSH! I love that. XD

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 56: C.O.W<br>**

"Josh and I broke up."

My eyes bulged and I nearly choked on the spoonful of chicken noodle soup I was about to swallow. It scalded my mouth and I quickly swallowed, my eyes tearing up. "What?" I finally choked out.

Ariana sat across from me, looking abnormally calm after the sentence she had just uttered. She half-smiled at me. "He kind of got angry with me after I ditched him at the fair the other night…"

I looked at her in horror. "What? But you didn't ditch. You were kidnapped!"

"I couldn't exactly tell him that, could I?" Ariana responded, smiling wryly.

Immediately I felt guilty. Ariana couldn't tell anyone about the gang, so she couldn't explain the truth to Josh. "Oh, Ariana. I'm so sorry. This is all my fault—"

"Don't worry about it," Ariana cut me off, shaking her head. "It's not your fault."

"Yes it is," I muttered glumly. "You and Josh were together for so long…"

Ariana shrugged. "Maybe too long. For the last few weeks it felt like we were more like friends than boyfriend and girlfriend. Josh thought so too, so I guess this is for the good."

"I'm sorry, Ari," I apologized again, frowning at her. Even if she seemed okay on the outside, I knew Ariana better than that. "You'll find someone new…"

Ariana rolled her eyes. "Sure, but not for a few months. I'd like to stay single for awhile."

"Being single is fun," I told her energetically. "You get to fuss over cute guys without feeling guilty!"

Ariana smirked. "Yeah, well now I can't do that with my best friend, can I?"

I blinked at her in surprise. "Huh?"

"You didn't reply to any of my texts last night, and you're in a frighteningly good mood. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what happened after Wendell and I left the other night."

My cheeks blazed. "N-nothing happened!"

"You can't lie to me, Daphne," Ariana responded with a cheeky grin.

_Now that's something I haven't heard before_, I thought sarcastically. A smile spread across my lips. "You can't tell anyone, Ariana."

Ariana held up her hands. "Daphne, I never tell secrets."

Which was completely true. I gestured for her to come closer, and she leaned over the table, bringing her head as close to mine as possible. Closing the space between us, I brought my head to her ear and uttered two simple words. "We're together."

Ariana let out an excited squeal, pulling away from me, her eyes as wide as saucers. "Really?"

"Really really."

"Oh my gosh! That's…that's… Matt-tastic!" she gushed.

"Matt-tastic?" I let a snort escape my lips.

"You know, how you say things are _Pucktastic_, but this time it's _Matt-tastic_, because that's what he wants you to call him? Right, right?"

I laughed. "I know what you meant."

"I knew it was going to happen, though! I so told you!"

I laughed at her excitement. "You did."

"It's about time," a voice commented from above me.

Ariana's eyes snapped to Wendell, who was standing above me, frowning. I rolled my eyes at him.

"You can't tell anyone," Ariana told Wendell, giving him a serious look. "This is really important."

Wendell held up his hands. "I'm not going to tell a soul. But Ariana, Josh just told me that you guys broke up."

"That's because we did."

"Are you okay?" Wendell asked, giving Ariana a concerned look.

Ariana waved her hand. "Don't worry about me. It was going to happen anyway. Besides, as our relationship ended, a better one started. Officially, at least."

"Well, we aren't really official," I muttered, stirring my soup. "It's a secret, remember?"

Ariana grinned at me. "More than one person knows, so technically it is official. Ah, a forbidden romance. How romantic."

Wendell snorted. "You mean creepy."

I slammed my elbow into his stomach. "It's not creepy!" Wendell groaned, taking a few steps away from me.

"Yeah! Daphne and you-know-who are only four year apart. My parents are ten years apart," Ariana defended.

Wendell frowned, still rubbing his stomach. "I was kidding, jeez." He took a seat next to me, stealing the crackers that had come with my soup. "So Bryant's in jail for a long time, huh?"

"No," Ariana responded before I could. Wendell and I stared at her in surprise. She gave us the are-you-stupid look. "Every man is innocent until proven guilty. He's got a trial this weekend. Don't you have to go to it Wendell?"

Wendell shrugged. "Well yeah. But he's in jail right now, so that's all that matters..."

"What matters is that we don't have to deal with the gang situation again. Ever," I corrected confidently.

Ariana, Wendell, and I stared at each other for a moment. Wendell and Ariana looked relieved, small smiles slowly crossing their faces. It was hard to believe. Bryant was gone.

"December's going to be a good month," Wendell decided, grinning.

Ariana nodded in agreement. "A very good month. Full of love, eh, Daphne?"

I blushed, ducking my head. "Maybe," I murmured bashfully. "Or a month of flirting, for the single people."

Ariana and Wendell exchanged grins. "Sounds good."

Sighing contently, I dipped my spoon back into my soup. Just as I poured the spoonful into my mouth, the bell rang. Wendell immediately stood up, glancing at me with amused eyes. "Better hurry."

"Don't be late for Mr. Firay," Ariana teased, causing me to choke again.

I thumped my hand on the table, once again having the soup scald my throat and bring tears to my eyes. Ariana was going to end up killing me one day. She laughed before also pushing away from the table, joining Wendell, and then following him towards the throng of students leaving the cafeteria. I quickly grabbed my tray and hurried to the front of the room, handing off my tray to the lunch lady. She gave me a knowing smile, as if she knew I was going to be late.

Twirling on my heel, I hurried towards the exit. I only got three feet before someone ran into me. A groan of frustration left my mouth and I looked up to glare at the person. Daniel was looking at me in surprise.

"Daphne?"

"Hey," I greeted, stepping around him. "Better hurry, or you'll be late."

"You're going to be late anyway," he informed me, handing his tray to the lunch lady.

"I know."

He grinned at me. "There's strength in numbers."

The bell rang ten seconds before we entered the classroom. Mr. Firay was in the middle of a sentence. He paused, glancing at us with a frown. Before he could scold us, Daniel spoke up. "Sorry, my locker was jammed. Daphne helped me."

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow at me. Immediately images of us necking on the couch two nights before filled my head, causing a blush to spread across my face. My head shot down and I focused on a tile on the floor.

"Well, take a seat."

"Yes, sir!" Daniel chirped, pushing me forwards.

I stumbled to my desk, unable to look back up at Mr. Firay. Someone snorted from the back, and I didn't have to look to know it was Wendell.

"As I was saying, now that our seafood course is done we'll be having an exam on seafood cuisines on Friday."

A groan swept throughout the class, and a few people muttered complaints. I kept my eyes on my desk, focusing intently on the word _diploid _someone had etched into the wood.

"We don't meet for class tomorrow and there's no school on Friday, so the test will be on Thursday. Today and Wednesday will be review," Mr. Firay continued, sounding slightly amused. Suddenly a hand appeared on my desk. "Would you guys like to go over things on the board, and start the review packet?"

Starting working on the review packet was the unanimous agreement. Mr. Firay emitted a low, alluring chuckle. "I'll go get them," he told the class, retracting his hand from my desk. After a few moments I looked up, watching as he disappeared into the supply room.

The classroom was quickly filled with the sounds of desks and chairs scraping against the floor as people moved to sit with their friends. Someone pushed a desk against mine and I turned to see Wendell slumping into it. He yawned, stretching his arms.

"So," he started casually. "You know how I have court Friday?"

I gave him a pitying look. "Yep."

"Um, I was wondering, and you don't have to, but if you want to come with me," he continued, giving me a sheepish look. "Some moral support would be nice."

I gave him a wary look. "But Bryant…"

"Yeah, I know it's Bryant, but he can't do anything because we're in the court," Wendell said quickly, stopping me before I could protest. "Please, Daphne? Even if he does try something, there are cops everywhere, and that will just add to his penalty. You'll be completely safe."

Wendell gave me the puppy dog look, and I felt myself resigning. I sighed. "I'm sitting in the back."

"You can sit wherever you like!" Wendell cried, a little too loudly. People gave us curious looks. I waved them off.

"So, you want to work with me on the review packet?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

Wendell frowned, slumping onto his desk. "I hate review packets," he muttered, running a hand through his blonde hair. "They're so time-consuming."

I rolled my eyes at him. "Stop complaining, review packets are easy."

"That's the spirit, Ms. Grimm."

My head snapped up involuntarily and my eyes landed on Mr. Firay, who was smirking down at me. His eyes twinkled in amusement as I gaped at him, trying to form a coherent thought. Suddenly there was a pain in my ribs and I winced, turning to glare at Wendell.

"You were gawking," he told me, sharing the same expression as Mr. Firay.

Now I blushed, unable to look back up at Mr. Firay. "I— I wasn't gawking…"

Mr. Firay chuckled, but I still refused to look up at him. "We'll need the C.O.W for this activity, so I need a volunteer to come with me to go get it."

A few people said they'd go, but I knew whom Mr. Firay was going to choose before he even said it.

"Hazel, you wanna help?"

I sighed, pushing myself up from my desk. I knew it— wait. I froze in my movements. Hazel? My eyes snapped to Mr. Firay, who was smiling at Hazel. I turned to her, watching as she started to get up from her seat with an excited expression on her face.

Without thinking, I shot up in my seat, throwing my hand in the air. "Mr. Firay, I have to, um, go to the bathroom anyway, so I can just go with you to make it easier."

"Desperate," Wendell coughed quietly.

I shot him a glare before turning to Mr. Firay, who had a satisfied smirk on his face. That's when I realized he did that on purpose. My jaw dropped and I opened my mouth to take back what I'd said, but he cut me off.

"That works," Mr. Firay said, his normal, polite smile returning. "Hazel, maybe you could return it after class."

I didn't have to turn to know she looked disappointed. "Sure," she responded glumly.

"Wendell, will you hand out the packets?"

Wendell nodded, taking a pile of papers from Mr. Firay. "Sure thing."

Mr. Firay smiled. "Alright. Let's go, Ms. Grimm."

Shooting a glare at the back of Mr. Firay's head, I followed him out of the classroom, and into the empty science wing hallway. As we walked through the quiet hall, Mr. Firay started whistling. I trailed behind him, my eyes on the floor, keeping a safe distance between us. Images of us kissing kept coming into my mind, causing my face to grow hot. What was Mr. Firay thinking right now? About the other night?

Suddenly I ran into something hard, causing me to fall a few steps back. I rubbed my nose, looking up to see Mr. Firay grinning at me in amusement. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," I muttered, dropping my gaze.

"Really? Your face is a little red, are you feeling okay?"

I glared at him, blushing deeper. "I'm fine!"

He emitted a low chuckle. "What were you thinking about?"

"N-nothing," I stuttered, going to brush by him. He chuckled again, purposely stepping in front of me so I bumped into him. I grounded my teeth. He took pleasure in teasing me, and was shameless about it.

"You know Daphne, you should probably stop blushing every time I look at you in class," Mr. Firay advised, holding the door that led to the stairwell open for me. "Someone's going to think you have a crush."

I glanced at him with a frown. "It's not my fault. Stop looking at me."

Mr. Firay snorted. "I can't do the impossible."

A smile slowly made its way onto my face. Whether or not he meant that as a compliment, it still made my stomach flutter. Mr. Firay glanced at me, his blue eyes looking amused again. Suddenly I had the urge to grab his swinging hand, but I resisted it. We were in school. We weren't a couple. We were student, and teacher.

"What's wrong?" Mr. Firay asked unexpectedly, stopping half way down the stairwell. With me on the step above him, we were almost the same height.

I cocked my head. "What do you mean?"

"Your expression just dropped," he told me with a frown. "What are you thinking?"

"Um, nothing really," I told him, blushing slightly. Would he think I was being childish because I was disappointed about our lack of interaction? We both knew in school we couldn't be together.

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow. "Tell me."

"The test is worrying me," I murmured bashfully, down casting my eyes.

"Daphne, you can't lie to me."

I pursed my lips, looking back at Mr. Firay. My eyes widened in surprise when I realized how close we were. His face was merely inches away from my own. Concern was etched into his eyes, causing my heart to skip a beat. I chewed on my bottom lip, hesitating for a moment. Mr. Firay gave me an impatient look. I sighed.

"I know it's stupid," I started, playing the bottom of my shirt, "but it's just…"

"Just?"

"I don't like that we have to act like student and teacher instead of… you know," I admitted, feeling my face heat up. "It's weird. We have to act like we're almost complete strangers. It's a little, um, lonely."

Mr. Firay's face dropped a little bit. Immediately I regretted admitting what I was thinking about. "Sorry, just forget—"

Mr. Firay suddenly leaned forwards and quickly pressed his lips against mine. My eyes widened in surprise, and he quickly pulled away, glancing behind him. I raised a hand to my lips, looking at him curiously.

"Daphne, I understand what you're saying," Mr. Firay told me, putting a hand on my shoulder. "But I know that you know what comes with us being… you know." He lowered his voice slightly, gazing at the door again.

I nodded my head quickly. "I know. It's just going to take awhile to get used to."

Mr. Firay gave me a small smile. "Same here. Especially because while you have a reason to look at me during the whole class period, I can't spend it looking at you, otherwise someone will think something."

With that, he turned and started down the stairs again. I blanked, staring at his back in surprise. A blush blossomed on my cheeks again and I hurried to catch up to him, catching the back of his shirt. "Thank you, Mr. Firay."

"Matt," he corrected me, glancing over his shoulder. "Mr. Firay in class, and only in class."

"Right."

When we arrived at the library, Mr. Firay went in to get the C.O.W while I waited by the entrance, rocking on the balls of my feet. He appeared moments later, lugging the large cart of laptops. I quickly hurried forwards to help him push it.

"I now understand why they call this thing a C.O.W," he told me as we pushed it out of the library. "They weigh just about as much. Turn left, we have to take the elevator," he ordered.

A few students in the classrooms we passed gave us curious looks as we lugged the Computers On Wheels towards the elevator. A few students waved enthusiastically to Mr. Firay. He returned their gestures with an award-winning smile— one of his polite, fake smiles.

"You're still popular, huh," I commented casually.

Mr. Firay smirked. "Yep."

"Do the students ever tell you anything exciting?" Never before had I realized how hard it was to make small talk with Mr. Firay. A grimace crossed my face. I needed to work on that.

Mr. Firay shrugged, checking over his shoulder quickly to make sure our path was still clear. "A girl confessed to me the other day."

I nearly choked on my spit. "What?"

Mr. Firay's smirk grew wider and he raised an eyebrow. "Are you jealous? Trust me, it wasn't even a sixth of how good yours was."

"People confess to you?" I asked in shock.

"Oh yeah. All the time."

"I didn't realize girls…" I trailed off, blinking rapidly. Girls confessed to Mr. Firay? Who? When? Why? I swallowed my questions, trying to stay calm. I was _not _going to be the obsessive girlfriend.

Mr. Firay suddenly started laughing, bending his head down. He was laughing so loudly that Mr. Stevens, the math teacher, glared at him before shutting his door.

"Your face was priceless," he finally said, grinning like an idiot. "Absolutely priceless!"

I glared at him, feeling my face heat up. "You were joking, weren't you?"

Mr. Firay nodded, putting a hand over his mouth to stop any more laughter from escaping. "Daphne, you're too cute."

"You're a jerk," I stated, slamming the button to the elevator.

"I know."

The elevator door opened, and together we moved the cow into the small compartment. I hit the button for the second floor, and the doors shut, leaving Mr. Firay and I in silence. Suddenly Mr. Firay was next to me, a playful smile on his face. I took a step away from him warily.

"Mr. Firay, we're in school," I warned him.

He raised an eyebrow. "I know this?"

I frowned. Wasn't he just about to kiss me?

"I heard Wendell wants you to go to court with him on Friday," Mr. Firay commented, leaning against the elevator wall casually, crossing his arms. "What was he going in for again?"

A sigh escaped my lips. "Mr. Firay, I'm sitting in the back."

He scowled. "It's still Bryant. You know what happened last time with Bryant?"

"You got hurt," I pointed out before he could continue. "Nothing happened to me."

"But something could."

"We'll be in a court room!"

"Daphne, I'm worried about you," Mr. Firay told me flatly, giving me an exasperated look. "Sure, you're in a courtroom. But it's _Bryant_. You don't know him like I do."

I bit my lip. "I know… I just… Wendell wants me to go, and I'll be at the back. I won't let Bryant see me."

Mr. Firay stared at me for a moment, looking annoyed. Then he sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Fine. Go."

"Mr. Firay…"

Mr. Firay shook his head. "I'm not angry. I get that you want to help Wendell. But if you're going to court Friday, then I want you to come over on Thursday."

I looked at him in surprise. "Huh?"

"Now that we're together, I don't have to think of stupid excuses for you to come over," Mr. Firay told me as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I wanted you to come over Friday, but if you want to go to court, come over Thursday."

He wanted me to go over? I grinned at him, suddenly feeling one hundred times better. "I'll definitely be over Thursday."

* * *

><p><strong>AN.**Since I feel -still- a bit sad, here's a story that'll cheer us up! It certainly did justice to SweetShireen and me. ;D

So! If you haven't read her latest chapter of Inside the Insanity, Gone, go do so after reviewing FTFT! Anyways, that's what I did. I guessed Oberon for the chapter and usually, my guesses are wrong, no matter how smart I am in school. So in my review, I wrote that if my answer was wrong, I'd throw a fit and not post the FTFT sequel (quite a blackmail, right?).

She tried to trick me. In her reply back to me, she pretended to say I was wrong and wrote and I quote, "Haha, an angry Lara, oooh, I'm scared."

This is where the good part gets in. She played me. I played her. So...**is there still a sequel to For The First Time**? I guarantee you will cry...(Here's my message back to her)

_Good job -you just gave me permission to announce no sequel for that trick. Nice job. We will never know what happens to DxMseed in the future._

By the way, I wasn't actually getting the message, so I was reading, "You were...RIGHT!" just as your trick clicked my head. So I didn't freak out. Ha!

But see here, the trick to tricking a person and making them freak out is this:  
>Step One: Give your lie blatantly, then change the subject<br>Step Two: No emoticons, no nice words, nothing. They'll give you away.  
>Step Three: Pretend the subject that you lied about over, then introduce it at the end.<br>Step Four: Giggle to yourself that you're a genius.  
>Step Five: Introduce a topic at the bottom in case the person you're tricking tries to skip read all te way to the bottom to see if your lie is true (they will not find anything if you do step 5 right, of course)<p>

Example:  
>"Because of that. No more sequel.<br>How'd you like them Hunger Games? PEETA! PEETA!  
>So I was scrolling through Wattpad and I saw this weird story. Freakin' anti-Pucktastic. Who makes Puck gay? It's just...wrong.<br>I have to sleep now. I have school tomorrow.  
>By the way, I was totally kidding about that no sequel. The tables have turned, haven't they?<br>Now. Cue evil gigle laugh thingamajig.  
>Did I get you? You're not mad, right? I figured it was Oberon though, because the other reviews did say so. So it's all good, right? No, I'm a pumbutt (used non-affectionately), right? Hope you're not mad.<br>Pumbutts, pumbutts, pumbutts!  
>Hey, have you seen any of the Lion King's? Was "Pumbutt" based on that? Because there's a character name Pumbaa and that would kind of make sense, right?<br>Sometimes, I don't know what I'm saying.  
>Hey, re-speaking of HG, how would you rate it on similarity to the books? People have told me Madge wasn't in it and that Rue sings and was supposed to whistle, an left a lot of scenes out. So...on a scale of 1-10, that is. :)<br>Hakuna mattata! What a wonderul phrase!  
>Hakuna mattata! Ain't no...something, phrase!<br>It means no worries! For the rest of your dayyys!  
>It's our problem free, philosophy...<br>Hakuna mattata!  
>Ah, sorry, I just needed to fill up my Example. XD"<p>

_And there you go. ;D I'm a pumbutt!  
>-Lara<em>

...out of laughter! Or at least a giggle. Yeah, I ruined my "steps" with this message, but oh well. XD I'll add more so Step Five will be commissioned! ^^

As you can see, I'm just like you guys -most of you. I am a crazy wackjob that loves to make people laugh and smile without telling a lame joke. I really suck at making people smile in person because I just don't have the face for it:

Lara: So, you're a serial killer?

Julie: That's not funny.

Lara: Why not?

Julie: You look too serious. *mimicks my -_- face*

And there you go. Hope you all had a goood laugh! ^^

Well...I'm tired...I actually have to work on my science project -NOT SCIENCE _FAIR! _:D A fish project- that'll be due Monday...ugh. I really don't want to, but what can you do? :)

By the way, Home EC teachers _do _give tests/exams. That info credit goes to "WiseGeek(Dot)com: What does a Home Economics Teacher do?" ^^

See you guys...Sunday! _**HASTA LA PASTA!**_

(In case you didn't notice, I watched "Paint it White" today. xD My love for Italy has grown, definitely.)

~LαΓα


	57. Chapter 57:

**A/N.** Firstly, I'm so sorry if I seem to be ignoring friends –both anonymous and people who have FFs. I most certainly am not –I've just had –as last chapter's A/N implies- a rough week. I just finished my fish project (Yaarrr!) and I'm tired. I just remembered that I promised TheAfterShock an update tonight on FB (in exchange, you'll review _this _time, I assume?), so I don't want to be a let down. But anyways, I'm glad that you liked my "Steps to Fooling" thing in last update's A/N. XD I plan to follow it forever and ever.

_GAH._Why. Won't. Basil. And. Henry. COOPERATE. I tried putting them in this chapter, but GAH. Every time I tried, I kept writing that they find out about DxMSeed's relationship, and they're not supposed to. Yet. D: So, sadly, Veronica is only appearing in this again. But I promise -I'll have more than one chapter where Henry, Basil, Sabrina, Puck, and the other Grimms (though I dunno what's happened to Granny; if she's passed away or not...) appear. I wish I could put Puck or Sabrina in here somehow…

I had a lot of fun writing this chapter anyways. That's the best part of writing -having fun! ^^ I hope those of you who want to join the FF authors on this site keep that in mind.

Sorry, no review replies again. Usually, when I'm on FF, I read reviews, try to remember to reply to them later, upload the chapter, reply to a few PMs, then log off. Really sorry. Hopefully –if time isn't too consuming- will I do reply to them.

Ummmm, one more bad news…this might be my last post in FF. Ever. I just found out that I'm slowly getting arthritis and that I might never be able to type again. So…bye guys.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 57: The Grocer Has A Secret<strong>

"Happy is the heart that still feels pain; Darkness drains and light will come again," I sang quietly to myself, bending over to re-lace my shoes. "Swing open up your chest and let it in. Just let the love, love, love begin."

"You're in a good mood."

My heart leapt into my throat as I quickly erected myself, twisting around on my heel. My mom raised her eyebrow at me. My face blazed and I quickly ducked my head to hide my blush.

"In fact, you've been in a good mood all week," my mom commented thoughtfully. "And you're ditching me tonight, even though I'm home…"

I looked back up at her with a frown. "Sorry…"

She held up her hand. "Hey, you made plans first. It's not like I'm going to make you cancel them. Besides, if my hunch is right, you wouldn't cancel these plans anyway."

"What hunch?"

She smirked, giving me that awfully creepy, knowing smile. "Rhymes with Fister Lemaiy."

"Sorry mom, I don't know any nun named Sister Tremain," I responded cheekily, feeling my face heat up again. She was too smart for her own good.

My mom laughed. "Good one. How are you getting there?"

"He's coming to pick me up."

"That works out perfectly! I have to go back to work later, so I need the car," she explained. "It's going to be a very late night. I probably won't be back until the early morning… Why don't you ask Mustardseed if you can stay at my night?"

I looked at my mom in shock. "What? No, mom. I'm not asking that."

The doorbell suddenly went off, startling me. My mom grinned widely and locked gazes with me. I knew at once what she was planning to do. We both started for the door at the same time.

"Mom!" I called after her. "Mom, no!"

"I'm just answering the door, Daphne!" my mom responded, giving me an amused look from over her shoulder.

Before I knew exactly what happened, I found myself lying face-first on the ground. A groan of pain escaped my lips just as I heard the front door open. My mom greeted Mr. Firay enthusiastically as I glared at the floor in front of me, cursing my clumsiness. I had tripped over the rug.

"Daphne, get off the floor," my mom ordered. "That's rude."

Mr. Firay chuckled as I pushed myself back to my feet, brushing off my shirt. It was just my luck I decided to wear black. It brought out the dirt fantastically. My mom disappeared from the hall, leaving Mr. Firay and I alone. He smirked at me and I felt my cheeks heat up.

"You're coming with me to the grocery store," Mr. Firay informed me, swinging his keys around on his finger. "Hope you don't mind."

"I don't," I said quickly, causing his smirk to grow.

"Okay, Mustardseed, I have Daphne's bag here," my mom said, suddenly reappearing with my backpack in hand. "It's got everything she needs."

I stared at her in bewilderment. "What? For what?"

"Staying over, silly," my mom responded, rolling her eyes. "I told you I'm working late. Your father's out again, and Basil's at a friend's house, so _someone_ has to watch over you."

"But— but," I spluttered, turning to Mr. Firay, to my mom, and back again. "Wait a second. Did you guys have this all planned out before hand?"

Mr. Firay gave my mom a secret smile. "It seems like I'm the favorite babysitter, Daphne."

"Babysitter?" I repeated incredulously.

My mom quickly clapped her hands together. "Mustardseed, didn't you say you had to go to the supermarket? If you don't hurry, it will close."

"It's only seven!"

Mr. Firay glanced at me, raising an eyebrow. "I guess we should get going. Here, I'll take Daphne's bag." He held out his hand to my mom, taking the backpack from her hands. "Ready, Daphne?"

"Yeah," I muttered, shooting my mom a dirty look. She had this all set up.

Mr. Firay dipped his head to my mom. "Nice seeing you again, Veronica."

"You too!" my mom chirped. "Come by for dinner sometime! Daphne's not the only one who likes your company."

"_Mom_!"

Mr. Firay chuckled, hoisting my bag over his shoulder. "I can take a hint. We'll make plans soon. Take care." He turned and went out to the car, leaving my mom and me alone.

"You're creepy, you know that?" I said, frowning at her.

My mom only smiled in return. "Daphne, guys like Mustardseed don't come around every day. He's a once in a lifetime catch, honey. When I met your father, it was the same for us. I don't want you to lose him. And he doesn't seem to want to lose you either."

I blushed slightly, ducking my head, and murmuring an incoherent agreement.

"Besides, he is a good person to have around to baby-sit you," my mom continued in a thoughtful voice. "He's very reliable."

"Bye mom," I said, brushing by her. I was eighteen. I didn't need a babysitter.

My mom laughed. "Bye, Daphne."

By the time I climbed into the passenger seat, Mr. Firay had already buckled and turned on the car. As soon as I snapped my seatbelt he pulled out of my driveway. The radio was off, leaving us in an awkward silence. My mind raced, trying to think of something to say to fill the quiet.

"Your mom's something, huh?" Mr. Firay started, sparing me a glance. "She's funny."

I grunted in responding, causing him to laugh. "She's kind of crazy. It's like she expects us to get married," I told him, glancing out the window.

"I wouldn't mind."

My head snapped towards him so fast, it cricked. Rubbing it, I stared at him with wide-eyes. "What?"

Mr. Firay glanced at me from the corner of his eye. "Not now, but in the future, I wouldn't mind."

"Really?"

"Is it that hard to believe?"

I shook my head quickly. "No! Well, yes. Or rather… I don't know," I mumbled, embarrassed.

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Daphne, I love you. Why wouldn't I want to marry you? You're just too young right now."

My heart skipped a beat, and for a moment I lost all train of thought. I didn't think I'd ever get used to having Mr. Firay say those three words so casually. Finally his words registered, and I pursed my lips. "You're not."

He smirked. "Daphne, we haven't even gone a date yet. We can discuss the future in the future."

"True," I responded, grinning at him. From the corner of my eye I saw the supermarket whiz by. "Um, Mr. Firay?"

He didn't respond. I frowned slightly. "Mr. Firay?"

Still no answer.

"Mr. Firay!"

"Sorry, my father isn't here right now," he responded in a business-like voice. "Please leave a message after the beep."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. "Sorry, sorry. Matt?"

"Yes, Ms. Grimm?" he responded, shooting me a sweet smile.

"I thought you said we were going to the grocery store?"

"We are."

"We just passed it…"

Mr. Firay shook his head slightly. "We can't go to that one."

"Why not?" I asked, furrowing my eyebrows. "Is it closed?"

He laughed. "No, it's open. But if we went there, there's a chance that someone from school might see us. A lot of students work there."

"Oh," I said in realization, a frown slipping onto my face. "Then where are we going?"

"Two towns over."

My frown grew deeper. We had to go two towns over just to go grocery shopping? It would have just been easier for Mr. Firay to do it by himself. I looked out the window, watching the streetlights as we drove under them. "Do you think it's going to snow this month?"

"Snow?" Mr. Firay repeated.

"You know, the cold stuff that falls from the sky—"

"Atmospheric water vapor that's frozen into ice crystals. I'm a teacher, Daphne –I even skipped a few grades in school. I know what snow is," Mr. Firay interjected.

"So, are you going to answer my question?"

"It might flurry, but probably nothing that will stick," he told me. "Maybe around Christmas if it's cold enough."

I blinked. Christmas? My hand shot to my phone in my pocket. The date read December fourth. Christmas was in less than twenty-one days. "What do you do for Christmas, Mr. Firay?"

"I don't know," he responded simply.

"Well, what did you do last year?"

"Well, not much considering I was in jail…" He trailed off, sending me an amused look.

I grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I forgot."

"Don't be sorry," Mr. Firay responded, letting out a bark of laughter. "I'd rather you forget."

"Well what did you do the year before that?" I tried again.

"I spent it with Daphne," he told me, his voice lowering considerably. I could almost pick up a tone of guilt.

It was hard not to smile. Mr. Firay didn't like talking about Daphne with me. Not that I could blame him— heck, I didn't want to talk about her with him either. She was a taboo subject. She was a likable person, but it was just too awkward to talk about her.

"Um, if you want… I bet my mom wouldn't mind if you wanted to have Christmas dinner and stuff at my house," I murmured, growing hot. "You know... only if you want to. You don't have to."

Suddenly Mr. Firay took a sharp right, sending my head into the window. I winced, pulling my head away from the glass. Mr. Firay threw me an entertained look. "Sorry. Almost missed the turn."

"I kind of figured."

"But about Christmas… I want to go."

My eyes widened. "Really?"

"Really. Daphne, you're really doubtful about my decisions, aren't you?" he accused, pulling into the parking lot of a grocery store I've never heard of.

"That's not it!" I denied instantly. "It just seems… Too good to be true."

The sound of the engine died out and Mr. Firay turned to me. A smirk was playing at his lips as he leaned over his seat towards me. "And why is that?"

I did my best to keep my face composed. With Mr. Firay so near, my heart beat had increased tenfold. "I don't know," I responded truthfully. "Whenever I think of us, I think of those crazy romance novels where something like this could only happen."

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow. "So we're like a couple in a crazy romance novel?"

I nodded. "You're the cool guy that everyone wants, and I'm girl who somehow ends up with him, even though there's nothing special about me."

"Well it's a good thing we aren't characters in a romance novel," Mr. Firay stated. "We're nothing like that. I'm the one who's lucky to have _you_. Now come on, the grocery store is calling."

After an awful, freezing minute walk from the car to the store we entered, Mr. Firay grabbing a basket from the rack in the front of the store. I glanced down the row of cashiers, searching for anyone I recognized. Luckily, no one looked familiar. Mr. Firay started walking away from me, and I quickly hurried to catch up.

"Mr. Firay, what are you getting?"

"Depends on what you want," he responded, glancing over his shoulder at me. "What do you want to eat?"

I looked at him in surprise. "I get to choose?"

"That's why I'm asking."

"Can we have…" I hesitated, trying to think of something that wasn't steak. "Er… Tacos?"

Mr. Firay abruptly stopped, causing me to run into him. He chuckled and took a step forwards as I rubbed my nose. "Tacos?" he repeated, sounding interested. "It's been a while since I've made those. Let's try it." Without warning, Mr. Firay grabbed my hand and began tugging me down aisle ten.

My face heated up as I hurried to keep up with him. Was holding hands in such a public place such a good idea? Mr. Firay stopped in front of the Mexican section, staring down a box of taco shells and seasoning.

"Should I buy pre-made?" he murmured to himself, squinting at the box. "Maybe it's our best bet… Daphne, do you think you can find the cheese and lettuce? I'll grab the hamburger and the other stuff and meet you in the bakery. Which is on the far right of the store," he explained pointing towards the area. "The vegetables and cheese are there too."

Reluctantly, I let go of his hand. "Sure."

He grinned at me. "What? Don't want to let go of my hand?"

"No," I denied, quickly turning away. "See you soon."

It was a straight shot to the vegetable section. Luckily for me, the lettuce was right next to the cheese. Suddenly something flashed by the corner of my eye. I spun around quickly, my heart jumping in alarm, but found nothing. Warily I took a few steps backwards, still looking around.

"Boo!"

A loud, piercing shriek left my mouth as I twisted around in horror, half-expecting Bryant to be standing there. When my eyes landed on a familiar blonde, I was relieved, then angry. I aimed a kick at his shin. "Sage! You scared the crap out of me!"

Sage laughed, easily avoiding my assault. "Obviously. Otherwise you wouldn't have screamed so loudly. I'm sure the whole store heard that."

"What are you doing here?" I asked with a frown.

Sage looked pointedly at his chest. I followed his gaze, realizing he was wearing a black apron. A little nametag was placed on the right side of his chest, reading _Sage R_.

"You work here?" I asked rhetorically.

Sage nodded. "I have to pay for college somehow."

"You go to college?"

"You don't know anything about me, do you?" Sage asked with a sigh. "After all that we've been through… You'd think I'd leave a lasting impression."

I rolled my eyes at him. "We don't ever talk about you, Mr. Secretive Grocer."

"I know," Sage responded with a grin. He took the lettuce from my hand and weighed it with his palm. "So are you here alone?"

"No, um, Mr. Firay is here too."

"Matt is here? With you?"

"Yep."

Sage suddenly had a huge grin on his face. "Really? That's great!" He suddenly threw himself at me, nearly knocking me off my feet as he gave me a giant bear hug. He squeezed me so hard that I found it difficult to breathe. "So I take it something good happened?"

"Sage," I wheezed, trying to get him to let go. "You're killing me."

"What?"

I struggled to push him off me. "I can't breathe!"

"I can't hear you," he sang, holding me tighter.

I opened my mouth to protest again, but Sage was abruptly pulled away from me. He looked behind me and grinned sheepishly. I didn't have to turn around to know it was Mr. Firay.

"Hey, Matt," Sage greeted.

"Sage," Mr. Firay responded in an irritated voice. "Mind telling me why you tried strangling Daphne?"

"I'm just happy!"

"I'd hate to see what you'd do when you're on cloud nine," Mr. Firay muttered, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Did you get the cheese and lettuce?

I pointed to Sage's hand, turning around to look at him. "He's got the lettuce. I've got the cheese. And I thought we were meeting at the bakery."

Mr. Firay gave me a flat look. "After you screamed, I figured something was wrong so I followed the source of the noise. Good thing I did, otherwise Sage might have actually killed you."

"I would not have," Sage protested, sniffing. "Well, if I did it would have been an accident."

I smiled wryly at him. "You sound so concerned."

He shrugged. "_Que sera sera_. Anyway, what are you two doing tonight?"

Mr. Firay raised the basket in his hand. "Making tacos."

"Oh, can I come?"

"Nope," Mr. Firay drawled, reaching over and yanking the lettuce out of Sage's hand. "You better get back to work."

Sage turned to me, pouting. "Daphne?" he said in a begging voice.

I stared back at him, biting my lip. He jutted his lower lip, giving me the puppy dog look, and took a step closer to me. Mr. Firay sent me a meaningful look and I quickly ducked my head. "It's Mr. Firay's house. I can't just invite you over."

Mr. Firay smirked as Sage's expression fell. He crossed his arms and turned his back to me. "I see how it is, Daphne."

"Aw, Sage—"

"Nope, nope, I understand," he said, holding up his hands. "You two don't need me anymore."

"Sage that's not it," I protested, grabbing the back of his apron. "What are you talking about?"

Sage glanced at me from over his shoulder. "Now that you two are together you want me out of the picture."

"Yep," Mr. Firay responded just as I cried, "No!"

Sage raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Don't listen to Mr. Firay," I told Sage, shooting Mr. Firay a dirty look. "I don't want you out of the picture."

"But I want _you_ out of the picture."

I stared at Sage incredulously. "Huh?"

Sage took a step closer to me, looking menacing. I took a step back, eyeing him warily. Sage sighed, shaking his head. "You see, Daphne. I want Matt for myself. We're destined to be lovers and I— oof!" Sage doubled over, clutching his stomach as Mr. Firay punched him in the gut.

"Sage, go be stupid somewhere else," Mr. Firay demanded, grabbing my hand. "We're leaving."

"I see you still can't take a joke," Sage wheezed, looking up and grinning at Mr. Firay.

Mr. Firay scowled as I blushed, remembering the time I had blurted out that Mr. Firay wanted to be with Sage.

"Daphne, let's make plans to go somewhere soon. Maybe take Shaine and Sairi somewhere," Sage said, brushing his hair out of his face.

A smile spread across my face. "Sure!"

"Let's go," Mr. Firay ordered, tugging on my hand. "I want to get something for dessert."

"May I suggest the chocolate mousse cake?" Sage called as Mr. Firay started dragging me away.

"I don't like chocolate," Mr. Firay responded. "Goodbye, Sage."

I looked up at Mr. Firay in surprise. "You don't like chocolate?" How could someone not like _chocolate_?

"Some of it is okay, but most of it is too sweet for me," Mr. Firay explained.

"Too sweet?" I repeated in a skeptical tone. "Coming from the man who uses three pounds of sugar in his coffee?"

Mr. Firay smirked down at me. "Hey, sugar and chocolate are completely different."

I laughed. "Whatever you say, Mr. Firay."

"Matt," he said forcefully. "Daphne, call me Matt."

My cheeks blazed and I ducked my head. "Sorry, um, Matt."

"That's better," he responded, emitting a low chuckle. "I like the sound of that much bet— shit."

Before I knew what was happening, Mr. Firay shoved me to the side with enough force to send me toppling away. I fell behind a large display of cereal, landing painfully on my wrist. When I looked up to glare at Mr. Firay, I saw him with an eerily familiar person. My eyes nearly bulged out of my sockets when I realized it was Puck. Both of them stared at each other.

"Puck?"

"Mustardseed?"

Mr. Firay blinked. "You…you've gotten a lot bigger."

Puck rubbed the back of his neck, looking a bit awkward. "I guess so. What are you doing here?"

Mr. Firay held up his basket. "Getting dinner."

I scrambled to my feet and quickly turned, sprinting down the aisle. My heart thudded in my chest as I pushed open the door and jogged outside. The cold air instantly sent goose bumps up my arms, and I pulled my jacket tighter, heading towards Mr. Firay's car.

We were two towns over! Why was Puck here? Wait, I forgot he lived in this area with Sabrina! That was too close. A shiver ran through me, and I leaned back against the car, watching my breath come out in white steam. I wonder what they could be talking about. Maybe they were making up after years with no connection of each other? Frowning, I glanced around the dark parking lot, seeing if anyone was around. From what I could see, I was alone… My heart skipped a beat and I groaned, sliding my back down the side of Mr. Firay's car until I was squatting.

The paranoid feeling was back. Even though I knew Bryant was in jail. To stop myself from looking around and freaking out more, I dropped my head into my arms, focusing on the sound of my breathing. No one was out here— there wasn't anything to be paranoid about. Well, besides someone finding Mr. Firay and me together. But other than that, I was safe.

Five minutes later I was literally shivering in my shoes. I plucked at the strings of my jacket, wishing I had a pair of minutes. And a hat. And a scarf. And anything else that could keep me warm.

"Daphne!"

My head snapped up and I saw a figure jogging towards me. As the person grew closer, I noticed it was Mr. Firay, a grocery bag in hand. He slowed to a walk and stopped in front of me, looking annoyed.

"Why did you come out here?" he demanded. "Do you not realize it's only about thirty degrees out?"

I frowned at him. "I couldn't stay in there!"

"You could have waited by the front of the store. It's not weird for two people who know each other to be in the same store," Mr. Firay pointed out, frowning back at me.

"It is if we all known each other in some way! And I don't think Puck was expecting me to be two towns over from where I live," I said to him. "Now, what did you guys talk about?"

He ignored me. "Get up." He held his hand out to me and I grabbed it.

"What did you tell him?"

"I'll tell you in the car… Your hand is freezing," he told me, making a face as he pulled me to my feet.

I blushed. "Sorry."

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "Sorry? Come on, get in the car." He unlocked the door for me and opened it.

I climbed in, following his form as he went to the other side of the car, tossing the bag of groceries in the back before hopping in the driver's seat. He quickly turned the key in the engine and flipped the heat on high.

"Give me your hands," he demanded.

Curiously, I moved my hands toward him. He enveloped my hands in his, pulling them into the sleeves of his jacket. Immediately my hands felt much warmer. Mr. Firay smirked at me. "Better?"

Ducking my head, I nodded. "Yeah, thanks."

"Anytime," Mr. Firay told me. "And I'm sorry for pushing you. I was surprised and pushing you away was the first thing I thought of. Are you okay?"

I smiled at him. "I'm okay. But seriously –did you guys make up? Are you connected now? Do you plan on visiting him often now?"

"Maybe, yes, and I don't know. We only had a few minutes before he had to take a call, but don't worry about it. Are you sure you're okay? You're not bruised or anything, right?"

"I'm really okay." His concern brought a blush to my cheeks; I wanted to slap my cheeks to stop blushing, but then I realized I'd look stupid.

"Good," Mr. Firay breathed in relief, oblivious to my internal conflict. "But that was close. I guess if we want to go somewhere together, we'll have to go further." He saw my questioning look and sighed. "It's not that I don't want to see Puck again. It's just that I want to properly talk to him again –not just pass him in the grocery store…"

I looked up at him with a frown. "Is that okay?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Is what okay?"

"Won't that be wasting gas?"

Mr. Firay laughed. "Daphne, us doing stuff together is way more important than how much gas it takes to do so."

My face grew hotter and I looked away from him. "I—I see."

Mr. Firay chuckled, letting go of my hands. "Alright, let's go home."

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **Hey, -odd question, but- did anyone watch the KCA Saturday night? I thought this was aggravating, but also funny. They had the awards for Best Movie actress and there was Emma Watson, Kristen Stewart, another girl, and ...man, I'm blanking, but she was in the Muppets movie, and also Enchanted. That redhead. Well, I wanted either her or Emma to win, and I was saying out loud, "PLEASE DON'T HAVE KRISTEN WIN." The TV says, "And the Best Movie actress is: Kristen Stewart!" It was one of those slow-mo moments where someone says, "NOOOOO!" DX And I didn't like her speech at all. She was pretty much like, "Oh, cool, I won. See you, peeps!" Done. *clenching fist* And I had the same deal with Justin Bieber (except his speech was good) -I said, "If Bieber wins, I will cry." TV: "JUSTIN BIEBER!" I was happy he got slimed, though. Wa ha ha.

*coughs* Am I too old for Nickelodeon? Oh well. ANYWAYS...

You know that part where Mustardseed says he wouldn't mind marrying Daphne? When I wrote that, it totally reminded me of this song, and then I realized, most chapter that I write -I listen to a song. So from now on (hopefully), I'll have like a 'Song of the Day', but it's not a question kind of thing. It's more like you guys can find out what songs I like. :D

**Double April Fools! **Puck _did _appear in this chapter. (AND YARRR! I ADDED SAGE!) And I do not have arthritis. :D I might be in danger of getting it, though. Because I type too much. Maybe.

You're all getting an update on **Wednesday or Thursday**, and the **next update will either be Monday or Tuesday**. Why? I won't be at home from Friday to Monday (we get home Monday, I think) because it's the start of my Spring/Easter Vacation. Yaaay! But that means...*dun dun dun* My inbox will fill up again! D: I hope they have some computers on the ship (or WiFi, but I dunno how that could be possible in the ocean) so I can organize my FF alerts and whatnot...

~LαΓα

**Song of the Day: I Wouldn't Mind by He is We**


	58. Chapter 58:

**A/N.** KYAAAAAA!

+800 Reviews! YARR! *happy dance*  
>What's even better is that it's actually +860. In two days. Day of Update, Review Count: 792. Next Day (not today :3), Review Count: 863 or so. That's more than -50- reviews within a 24 hour period. I think that's even more than what Ayns and Sky have had for one chapter. Maybe. I think they're biggest was 50 on a chapter...but now we're already so close to 888 since I've updated... *face palm* I literally screamed at my computer. I was like, "I'M SO <em>HAPPEE<em>!" I think it's funny –like ANannyMouse pointed out in her A/N. to me, pretty much a month ago I was like, "Yay! We've reached the 100s!" and now it's, "We're almost to the thousands!" Heehee. You guys have no idea how grateful I am to you –I probably wouldn't be writing FFs anymore if you guys hadn't been so _gravy_. Seriously. Give yourself a hug! *We all hug* Now let's Bon Dance! _Wa wa wa! Sole sole sole –wa wa wa! Sole sole! Aiyya! Aiyya! _^^

But really –thank you all so much for the appreciation you have of this story. Though, for those who say I should publish this: _coughs_, this _is _FANFICTION. Maybe if it had character changes and everything, I could, but this is FanFiction, all right? Because, if I did publish, I'd be taking credit for MB's work, and that's a no-no.

And it only took an hour and 27 minutes to reach 800 by the time I updated. ^^ Thank you, Archer Princess, for being the 800th! In return -four spoiler questions! Most questions can be answered so ask away!  
>But you know...I'm giving you four more. Why? I would've never gotten to +870 without your humongous load of reviews. I mean really! You reviewed FTFT from, like, Chapter 1 all the way to the Current Chapter. Within pretty much two days. That's...that's really hard to so. I could never do that. You must be persistent. "I must finish Lara's story and review every single chapter." XD Mahal kita! Maraming salamat. :) Salamat, salamat, salamat! But I'm really sorry I haven't replied to all of your reviews -I really want to actually, because they've made my week, but there's so many, and so little time. ^^ I'll reply to them in the future...probably. And I saw the "IT'S SO FLUFFY I'M GONNA DIIEEE!" video. XD I love Despicable Me.<p>

So. Eight spoiler questions. ^^ Lucky Filipina! ^^

All right. Sad news (and no, this isn't a late April Fools -I so got some of you guys with that arthritis thing, though! Wahahaha!): There's no Internet in the ocean -where I'll be for four days. DX Meaning: I will not be in contact with FF for the weekend (unless we dock somewhere, and we'll prolly just be walking around the shops in the Bahamas). So...my inbox will be filled up again! Yaar. *sarcasm* But I'll try to get back to all of you -I'm so far behind. DX But anyways, I wanted you guys to know so it doesn't seem like I'm ignoring you. :) But you know, maybe, but we'll see. ^^

One more thing to say before I'm off to bed, then put in a car for three hours to Miami, then put on a ship for a few hours or so, then get to the hotel: I'm so sorry this was late. Today was the "Washing of the Feet" at church, and I altar served for two hours: 7-9 PM, and I had to get there early for instructions. It was awesome -I messed up a little, but it was great. ^^

Now...Chapter 58! I might actually put this chapter in my Scrumptious Stories thing...It has food, so it's eligible. XD

**Chapter 58: Movies and Tacos**

The smell of tacos wafted around the room as I relaxed on the couch, barely focusing on the images the television was displaying. A yawn escaped and I glanced towards the kitchen, pursing my lips. The sounds of cooking could be heard, but the person doing the cooking couldn't be seen. And I couldn't go in there to see him either, since he had banished me from the kitchen.

I turned back to the T.V, picking up the remote to change the channel— you could only watch so many infomercials before going crazy. As I was flipping through the double digits, a familiar face flashed on the screen. My breath caught in my mouth as I stared at Bryant's mug shots. The text on the bottom of the screen was relaying information about the trial tomorrow. Swallowing nervously I quickly switched the channel again, ending on Sabrina the Teenage Witch…kind of ironic.

"Daphne?"

My heart leapt into my throat and I quickly turned my head up, coming face-to-face with Mr. Firay. My shoulders sagged and I let out a quiet breath. "You scared me," I accused.

He chuckled. "Sorry. Do you want everything on your taco?"

"Depends on what everything is. I don't like onions—"

"Or peppers?" Mr. Firay interjected with a small smirk.

I stared at him in surprise. "Oh, um, yeah. How'd you know?"

"You and I are more alike than we could ever guess," Mr. Firay responded with a shrug. "I'll be back in a minute."

"Sure."

A commercial for Christmas sales at a department store came on and I zoned out, focusing on the picture of Mr. Firay and his parents next to the television. A smile spread across my face as I remembered the first time I saw it. It was hard to believe that only four months had passed since I first met Mr. Firay. It felt more like two years had gone by.

My phone suddenly vibrated in my pocket, knocking me out of my reverie.

_Where are you?_

The contact read Wendell, sending a jolt of terror through me for a moment, until I remembered Wendell bought a new phone. Seconds later I sent my reply telling him where I was— truthfully. Wendell was one of the select few who could know about my relationship with Mr. Firay.

_Really? Behave._

My face heated up quickly._ Shut up. What do you want?_

_Meet me at the café on the corner of James Street before the trial._

_Why?_

_Because I want to dump my trash._

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion._ What are you talking about?_

There were a few moments of silence before my phone vibrated again._ You're stupid. Ever heard of the term breakfast?_

_Nope. Must be some Everafter thing that didn't make it to America._

… _Are you going to be there or not?_

_I'll be there, _I typed back, grinning.

"What are you grinning about?"

A startled squeak escaped my lips and I dropped my phone, a hand flying up to my mouth. My face flushed as I looked up to see Mr. Firay looking down at me. "I didn't know you were part mouse," he commented.

"I—I'm not!"

"Uh-huh."

"Really!"

Mr. Firay gave me a smug smile. "Whatever you say, Daphne. We're eating at the table."

"You have a kitchen table?"

"I'm not a barbarian," he responded in a flat voice. "Now go."

"Okay, dad."

As soon as the words left my lips, an awkward silence settled in. Mr. Firay looked caught between amusement and discomfort. Another blush spread across my cheeks as I headed towards the kitchen, ducking my head. Note to self: Don't call Mr. Firay dad. I really needed to think before I spoke. And I really needed to learn not to make things awkward.

"Daphne? Hey, Daphne."

A hand on my shoulder made me blink in surprise. I turned my head to Mr. Firay. "Huh?"

"I asked if you were allergic to peanuts," he told me, raising an eyebrow. "Twice."

"Sorry," I apologized, looking away from him. "And no, I'm not. Why?"

"I put peanuts in the taco seasoning."

I gave him a skeptical look. "What?"

He laughed, ushering me into one of the chairs. "Trust me, it's good."

"Okay… Can I have a fork?"

"A fork?"

I nodded. "You know, something you eat with—"

"Are you going to do that every time I repeat something you said?" Mr. Firay snapped, frowning at me.

"You do it to me!"

He smirked. "That's because it's funny when I do it. You at least blush."

"I do not!" I denied, though contrary to my words, my cheeks burned again. "But I need a fork to eat."

"It's a taco. You eat it with your hands."

I ducked my head. "I need a fork…" I was definitely _not_ going to eat a taco in front of Mr. Firay. It had to be the messiest meal in the world. There was no way I was going to make a fool of myself in front of him.

Mr. Firay watched me curiously for a moment before getting up from the table. Moments later he returned, handing me a fork. "A fork for the lady."

"Thanks." When I realized he had another fork in his hand I gave him a curious look. "Two forks?"

"I'm going to eat my taco with a fork too," he told me, dropping into his seat. "I want to know what's so fun about eating Mexican food with a fork."

"There's nothing fun about it…"

Mr. Firay shrugged, stabbing his fork into the center of his taco. Some of the seasoning leaked out from under the tortilla shell. He raised an eyebrow. "Are you embarrassed to eat a taco in front of me? That's cute."

"That's not it!" I countered, feeling my face heat up again.

He gave me a smug look. "You can't lie to me, Daphne."

"Could Daphne lie to you?"

Mr. Firay's expression was confused for a minute until he realized what I meant. Then his expression became guilty, and he dropped his gaze. For the second time, an awkward silence filled the room. After a moment Mr. Firay sighed. "She could lie, yes."

"So how come I can't?" I complained, ignoring the awkwardness.

Mr. Firay gave a low chuckle, now appearing more at ease. "Should I be worried about why you want to lie to me so badly?"

"I don't want to lie to you," I told him, shaking my head. "But what if I want to, like, have a surprise for you… or something."

"I'll do my best not to guess."

"Maybe I'll ask Daphne for tips…"

Mr. Firay pursed his lips at me. "I'd rather you not. Daphne was a pain in the butt when she lied. I prefer you the way you are now."

I smiled at him, not sure whether that was meant to be a compliment or not. It almost seemed impossible to lie to him. How had the other Daphne managed? Maybe she didn't keep eye contact…?

"Speaking of Daphne," Mr. Firay suddenly started, breaking my thoughts. "Remember why she was in town?"

"To hand out invitations to her wedding."

He nodded. "Right. Well Sage and I both got one. I don't really want to go—"

"What?" I interjected, my eyes widening. "Why not? Mr. Firay—"

"Matt," he corrected.

I rolled my eyes. "Matt, weddings are amazing! There's cake, food, dancing, pretty dresses—"

Mr. Firay smirked. "Pretty dresses?"

"Well yeah," I responded, quickly adverting my gaze. "You get to dress up… You should go! I'm sure Daphne would really like it if you went."

"She does want me to go."

"Then why don't you?"

"I never said I wasn't," Mr. Firay responded, his smirk widening. "You just assumed I wasn't."

Once more my cheeks warmed. "Sorry."

Mr. Firay held up his hand. "No worries. Anyway, the invite says we can invite someone… And since the wedding is in Massachusetts, I was thinking it'd be okay if you wanted to go."

"Me?" My eyes widened in excitement as I stared in surprise at him. "Really? Is it okay?"

Mr. Firay gave me a look like he thought I was stupid. "I just said it would be okay."

"I want to go!"

"I wasn't going to let you say no. However, school resumes the next day so you might be tired."

"I don't care about that," I told Mr. Firay, smiling broadly. "I definitely want to go. Who's Sage inviting?"

Mr. Firay gave a half-shrug. "We were thinking you'd like Ariana to come so it wasn't as awkward. Or Wendell. I'm pretty sure it's all right for Sage to bring a guy."

A laugh escaped my lips. "Wendell? At a wedding? That'd be quite the sight."

"So I take it you want to bring Ariana?"

"I'll ask if she can go," I told him, nearly shaking with excitement. Even though it was still a month away, I couldn't wait. Especially for the cake. And all the other food.

Mr. Firay turned his attention back to his meal, mixing his taco up with his fork. "Time to eat our taco salads."

I ignored his jibe, sticking my own for into my taco. While he was focusing on cutting up his tortilla shell, I quickly stuffed a large piece of my taco in my mouth. Mr. Firay abruptly looked up and I immediately slapped a hand over my mouth, flushing. He chuckled, adverting his gaze.

"You've eaten in front of me before, you know," he told me, taking an elegant bite of his taco. I narrowed my eyes at him. He was a guy. He shouldn't be eating neater that I was.

"Not this messy," I finally retorted when I swallowed. "I don't want to look gross."

Mr. Firay scoffed. "You could never look gross, Daphne. Now eat."

Ten minutes later, Mr. Firay had already finished eating, and was watching me intently. One of his famous smirks played across his mouth as he rested his elbow on the table with his head in his hand. Luckily for me, I was almost finished with my last taco— only two more bites.

"This could be a form of torture," I pointed out, aiming my taco-loaded fork at him. "Stop that."

Mr. Firay switched hands his head was resting on. "It's not torture. I'm just looking at you."

"Well stop."

"Can't do that. You get to stare at me in class all period long. Now it's my turn."

"Then I'm not eating anymore," I stated stubbornly, dropping my fork.

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "You're such a girl, Daphne."

"Oh? Did you want me to be a guy? Sage, perhaps?"

Mr. Firay scowled at me. "I don't even— You know what? I'm going to go choose a movie for us to watch. Finish your dinner," he ordered, pushing away from the table.

Resisting the urge to laugh, I quickly ate the rest of my taco as Mr. Firay left the kitchen. With the way he acted whenever I mentioned anything having to do with Sage and him romantically, it made me wonder. When I was done I grabbed my plate and his, placing them in the sink. Just as I was leaving the kitchen, Mr. Firay was entering. His shoulder slammed into my face, making me take a step back in surprise.

"Sorry about that," he apologized in an amused voice.

I rubbed my nose, frowning at him. "It's fine."

"Go sit down on the couch," he ordered, going back into the living room. "I'm going to get a blanket."

"Make popcorn too."

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow at me. "You think you can order me in my own house?"

"Yep," I said defiantly, standing a little straighter. His intense gaze almost made me back down, but just before I gave up, he shrugged.

"Just this once," he told me, holding up his finger. "Now sit."

When Mr. Firay finally made it back to the living room, he had a large, black comforter of his shoulder and a massive bowl of popcorn in the other. He sat down on the opposite side of the couch, keeping a large distance between us. Placing the popcorn bowl on the coffee table, he arranged the comforter over his shoulder so that it was covering him. Then he grabbed the popcorn bowl, flicked off the lights, and picked up the remote to the T.V.

I stared at him flatly. His lips twitched as he turned to look at me. "Oh, I forgot you were here."

I turned my head up at him, crossing my arms. What was he planning? He snickered and I glanced back at him, frowning. The blanket was off him now and he was gesturing me towards him. "Come here."

"I'm good."

"Daphne."

After a minute long staring contest I sighed, scooting closer to Mr. Firay. He grabbed my arm and pulled me nearly onto him. A blush made its way onto my face again as he wrapped the blanket around us. After a second I relaxed back into him, trying to calm my racing heart.

We're a couple now. This was what couples do. I couldn't get embarrassed every time Mr. Firay did something like this. He was more experienced in dating than I was, so I had to keep up with him.

"This is much better," Mr. Firay murmured, his jaw moving on my shoulder with each word. "Isn't it, Daphne?"

"Yeah," I muttered bashfully, my face still burning.

He chuckled. "I hope you like scary movies."

My head snapped around to stare at him. "Wait, horror movies?"

"That's what we're watching," he informed me, looking amused. "Do you get scared easily?"

"No," I lied quickly.

His smirk returned as he leaned closer to me to grab the remote off the coffee table. "If you get scared you can cling to me."

I squared my shoulders. "I won't get scared."

~(0o0)~BOO!~(0o0)~BOO!~(0o0)~IMMA SCARY GHOST!~(0o0)~BOO!~(0o0)~BOO!~(0o0)~

"Daphne," Mr. Firay hissed, pulling his hand out of my grasp. "Don't dig your nails into my hand!"

Unable to pull my eyes away from the screen, I patted his leg as an apology. I didn't even know what movie we were watching, but it was way too terrifying for my liking. I wasn't the horror movie girl. Suddenly a loud crash came from the television, causing me to jump violently.

"Ow," Mr. Firay groaned, holding me still. "Careful where you have a seizure."

I turned to glare at him. "You could have warned me!"

"I haven't seen this before." I gave him a flat look. He grinned. "Okay, maybe I have. But I'm not going to ruin the experience for you."

"I'm going to have nightmares," I complained, snuggling more comfortably into his chest, my past embarrassment long gone.

"What if I sleep beside you?"

My heart skipped a beat and for a moment I lost focus on the television. "Together?"

"Couples can sleep in the same bed without doing anything," Mr. Firay told me, resting his chin on my shoulder. "Besides, last time you were here you slept with Sage, didn't you?"

"Jealous?" I teased, even though my heartbeat was now racing with anticipation. However, I'd slept in the same bed as him before, so what was the difference between now and then?

He shrugged. "Maybe just a little."

"Sage will sleep with you next time he's here—"

Mr. Firay lightly knocked his head against mine. "I didn't mean I was jealous of you."

A smile slipped onto my face as I turned to look at Mr. Firay. "I know."

He rolled his eyes. "Watch the movie."

By the time the movie was over, I was half-asleep. Mr. Firay gently pushed me away from him, keeping the blanket around me as he went to turn off the television. When he turned back to me, he was grinning. "Don't usually stay up late, huh sleepyhead?" He came back over to the couch, holding out a hand to me.

When I placed my hand in his grasp, he quickly pulled me to my feet. I stumbled over the blanket and my face smacked against his chest. "I have to go to court tomorrow," I murmured.

"You don't have to."

"I promised Wendell."

Mr. Firay put a hand on my back, leading me towards his bedroom. "I know. I'd just prefer if you didn't go."

"I'll be safe," I assured him, barely paying attention to where we were going. "I think I actually want to watch Bryant get what he deserves."

Mr. Firay chuckled. "I'd actually like to see that as well."

"Do you want to come with me?"

"I'd rather not step in a courtroom…"

I frowned slightly. "Oh, right."

"Sorry," Mr. Firay apologized, removing his hand. "Want to change into your pajamas and go to bed?"

To be honest, I wanted to sleep in his clothes, but I wasn't going to tell him that. Mr. Firay grabbed my bag from the living room and I went into his bathroom to change quickly. When I came back, I walked in on Mr. Firay with his shirt off. I blushed, not sure whether to leave the room or not. He noticed me staring at him and he gave me a smug smile.

"What's that look for?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Nothing!"

"I sleep shirtless you know."

A flashback of the first time I stayed at Mr. Firay's apartment whizzed by my head. "I know."

Mr. Firay chuckled, gesturing for me to come closer to him. "Well this time I can give you a goodnight kiss."

My eyes widened in surprise as Mr. Firay reached out his hand and pulled me the rest of the way to him. Before I could respond to him, his lips were already on mine. After a second he pulled away, his eyes pierced into mine. I frowned at him, reaching up to kiss him back. He took a step back, his eyes twinkling in amusement.

"Eager, are we?"

My face burned while I opened my mouth to protest. Mr. Firay quickly covered it with his hand, chuckling. "Kidding. But you're tired, so I'm not going to keep you up. Get in the bed."

"What are you going to do?"

"The dishes," he informed me, nodding his head towards the kitchen. "I'm not a huge fan of flies."

I laughed quietly. "Can't say I am either."

Mr. Firay headed back to the kitchen while I climbed into his bed. For a moment I hesitated on which side to go on. Did Mr. Firay prefer one to the other? I finally decided on sleeping on the right side. As soon as my head hit his unbelievably comfortable pillow weariness swept over me. I yawned, pulling up the comforter on his bed to my chin. The sounds of Mr. Firay doing the dishes floated in the room and I focused on them, trying to stay awake so I could wait for him to come back. It didn't work. Before I knew it, I was dead asleep, the scent of Mr. Firay surrounding me.

**A/N. **YAY! NO CLIFFY THIS TIME! *proud face* Hopefully this will hold you guys until Monday. I have no school next week, so I'll update **Monday. **^^ Again, thanks so much for getting me to the 800s! And we're only a few reviews away from 900. ^^ I'm so excited. But again –wow, I haven't said this in awhile- **ONE REVIEW PER CHAPTER. **Airene Archerway, you're all right. If you forget something, you usually review once anonymously , so this isn't pointed at you. :D For those who _do_: One review per chapter. If you forget to add something, you can review anonymously only _once _or your two other comments will be deleted. I still feel bad for those really great authors who don't have many reviews, but all I can do is have these regulation thingys. :3 And, you'll be spamming my inbox if you review more than twice for one chapter, lol.

Again, sorry it's late. :3 But I wanted to post this chapter before I left tomorrow as a thanks. And I was scheduled to, lol.

**QotW: **What's your favorite vacation memory and why? Your answer will not count unless you review about the chapter, too. I'm following what Curlscat does, so I hope she doesn't mind.

See you **Monday!**

…**HASTA LA PASTAAA!**

~Lara

PS. If you guys want a new anime to watch, I'm currently watching this show called, "Okami-san and her Seven Companions". IT HAS FAIRYTALE CHARACTERS. Well, they're based. Okami-san is kind of like the Big Bad Wolf, and her name literally means, "Wolf". There's a girl –ugh, totally blanking on her name- who's name means…either "Red" or "Little Red Riding Hood" and she's so _cute. _And this guy has a fear of people staring at him –he's supposed to be the hunter in LRRH's story. ;3 I'm not sure how to explain the anime, but…IT'S SO FREAKIN' AMAZING SO FAR. Only downside is that there's only twelve frickin' episodes. -_- The manga's ongoing though, from what I hear. *sighs* It's so good. I love it as much as Hetalia… 


	59. Chapter 59:

**A/N. **…We're almost to 900 reviews…well, we're probably _at _900 now that this is updated…Maybe. :3 But –you guys really made me smile. This was a great gift coming back from the cruise –for those that seem to have neglected any earlier A/Ns, I was on a cruise for four days to the Bahamas. To put it simply –I ate as much ice cream as I wanted, so I'm happy. And it was my first cruise so I liked it!

Now…**Warning: The following chapters end in cliff hangers. Don't like it, then don't read this chapter and the next until chapter…chapter 61 is updated. We're at 59, so you'll have three cliffies, pretty much. **

To Airene Archerway and Archer Princess: **I'm so sorry with that mess up. **You know your pennames are pretty similar, right? :3 Well, looking back, Archer Princess was the 800th, and Airene Archerway was the constant reviewer. I thought it was one person, but you guys get four each. Sorry about that mix up. Is that all right with you? And you just send me a PM –titled "Four Spoiler Questions" if you want- and I'll answer _any _four questions. Any. But if you sincerely would like to give it to someone else (you're so generous!), just give me their name and your wish shall be granted. ^^

The 888th reviewer: Congrats, Curlscat! YARRRR! Dude, you're so awesome! And I feel really bad for being lazy with that story. I'm having writers block again –tomorrow we'll talk about it; is that all right with you?

Winner of the RotD: _My favorite memory was when I was 6 (I'm 11 now). I went to "Baharain" with my parents, my dad's friends and family because my dad's a diplomat! Anyways, the trip was awesome because we went boating, and you know the fast boats? We rode them like five times and I was able to buy lots of presents for myself! It was so cool and we even went rock climbing (well, I didn't exactly –I was only 6). But still, we did lots of fabulous stuff –it was amazing!_

(Edited a bit :3)

I assume you mean, "Bahamas", right? XD Funny –I was there this weekend. We didn't go boating, nor rock climbing, but we got to look at the Atlantis Hotel in Nassau –it was so pretty! Nice and descriptive memory! I'm sure it was lots of fun!

One last thing: **If you dare to read this chapter, **_**read all the way through. **_**Something in this might make you scream, "Oh no you di-an't!" But just keep reading, all right? Even if you start screaming at me, keep reading. **

**Chapter 59: Surprise**

"Don't turn your cell phone off," Mr. Firay reminded me for the millionth time. "Just put it on silent. Call me if you need anything."

"I know, I know," I responded, turning to give him a small smile. "Nothing will happen though."

Mr. Firay pursed his lips at me, looking worried. "Wendell is waiting for you inside, right?"

"Right."

"Okay." Mr. Firay looked at the café cautiously. "I'll wait until your inside. Text me when you're inside so I know you're okay."

A feeling of nervousness washed through me as I watched Mr. Firay's worried expression. "Stop being so nervous. You're making me nervous."

"Sorry," he apologized, reaching over and taking my hand into his. "I just have this awful feeling something's going to happen…"

A frown slowly spread across my face. "You too?"

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow. "We are talking about Bryant. He's known for dirty tricks."

"Oh," I responded, my hand gripping Mr. Firay's tightly. "Well I better go inside now…"

Mr. Firay pulled my hand closer to him, bringing me with it. Before I could blink he had his lips against mine, giving me a quick kiss. I inhaled sharply, taking in the scent of his familiar cologne. Our eyes met and his eyes twinkled. He leaned back in again, this time kissing me a little harder, and allowing me to return it. I shifted in my seat so I could be closer to him, bringing my free hand up to his face. He let go of my hand, bringing his to my back.

A gentle nip at my lip made me jump in surprise. My hand landed on the car horn, causing it to blare loudly. Immediately Mr. Firay and I separated, my face burning in embarrassment. "Sorry," I muttered, dropping my gaze.

Mr. Firay chuckled, brushing my hair out of my face. "It's alright. It wouldn't be a smart idea to be making out in such a public place anyway."

My gaze returned to his face and for a minute I stared into his eyes, mesmerized temporarily. When he blinked, reality hit me and I blushed again. "I should probably go."

Mr. Firay nodded, gently dragging the tips of his fingertips across my jaw. "Be careful, Daphne."

For some reason terror suddenly gripped me and I reached out and grabbed Mr. Firay's hand as he was pulling it away. He gave me a curious look, allowing me to drag his hand back over. I swallowed nervously, trying to calm my heartbeat.

"What's wrong?" he asked gently.

I shook my head, still holding onto his hand. "Nothing. I just… I love you, Matt."

Mr. Firay looked confused, but he smiled. "I love you too."

"Um, I'm going to go now," I murmured, blushing again. "See you… sometime."

"See you sometime too," Mr. Firay responded with a low chuckle.

After one more, quick kiss I exited the car, hurrying towards the café. Just before I entered I glanced over my back at Mr. Firay's car. He was watching me, and he raised one hand in a wave. I waved back, smiling slightly before going into the small building. Warmth and smell of freshly brewed coffee washed over me as soon as I stepped inside.

"Welcome!" one of the waitresses chirped at me as I walked by.

I smiled at her in return for a moment before looking around for Wendell. After a minute I finally spotted him in the far corner of the café, reading the newspaper. He looked up when I took a seat at the table, a grin spreading across his face.

"Hey Daphne."

"Morning," I greeted, pulling his cup of coffee over. "Are you ready for this court thing?"

Wendell shrugged. "Not really. My lawyer is though."

It felt weird hearing that Wendell had a lawyer. It was like hearing that a three year old owned a cell phone. A waitress came over to take our orders and I ordered a coffee and croissant (I'd get more, but I didn't bring a lot of money) while Wendell ordered a refill and a muffin. As she was leaving my phone buzzed in my pocket.

_Is Wendell with you?_

I made a face. It slipped my mind I was supposed to text Mr. Firay and let him know whether or not Wendell was actually here. I quickly typed out an affirmative answer and apology for not texting him sooner. A few seconds later he responded saying it was okay and that he was leaving.

"Texting your boyfriend?"

"Jealous?"

Wendell scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Not really. I'm not particularly interested in men that are four years older than me."

"So you're interested in other men?"

He gave me a flat look. "No, Daphne. I'm not gay."

I shrugged, holding up my hands defensively. "I never said that."

"Daphne, do you have the feeling that something bad is going to happen?"

"Huh?"

Wendell's suddenly serious expression threw me off guard. My heart dropped, and I lowered my gaze to the table. "You too, huh?"

Suddenly there was the wailing of a siren outside of the café. Both Wendell and I whipped our heads towards the window as a police car whizzed by. A shock ran through me and I turned to Wendell with wide eyes.

"That was creepy," he commented, slowly coming out of his tense state.

A small, dry laugh left my lips. "Very weird."

"Nothing's going to happen," he stated, as if trying to assure both of us. "It's just pre-court jitters, right?"

I bit my lower lip and chewed it slowly. "Probably… But, I don't know, all of this seems too easy. Bryant went down with barely any fight."

Wendell raised an eyebrow. "Didn't Firay get slammed with a shovel?"

"That's what I'm worried about," I admitted. "He hurt Mr. Firay, but not that seriously. He wanted to get me, but failed. He tried to kill Sage, but Sage survived. He took Ariana, but didn't harm her. I feel like I'm missing something."

Wendell's eyebrows pulled together. "This is life, Daphne. Not a movie. Something huge doesn't need to happen in order for something horrible to end."

"I know, but still… It just doesn't feel right."

"Do you want something else to happen?"

"No! No, definitely not!" I cried immediately. A man dressed in a black suit sitting across from us shot me a dirty look.

Wendell let out a quiet sigh. "Okay, I know what you mean. But Bryant can't do anything. He's been locked up in jail for the past couple days, and he's only coming out to go to court today. He'll be guarded the whole time."

Just then the waitress returned with our order. She had a curious expression on her face, as if she had been listening to our conversation. Wendell thanked her; giving her a look that meant, "go away". She smiled at him for a moment before walking away from the table. My croissant was calling my name, so I pulled the plate closer to me and began to pick at it.

"We have ten minutes before I have to go to the courtroom," Wendell informed me, ripping off the top part of his muffin. "You don't have to come right away if you don't want to."

I shrugged, popping a piece of my buttery pastry into my mouth. "I can wait in the hall or something. I'd rather not be here alone and look like a loner."

Wendell laughed. "Alright."

Time passed more quickly than I had expected, and soon it was time for Wendell to go. I quickly had the waitress put my coffee into a to go up, and ordered another croissant to go. Wendell raised an eyebrow at me.

"What? I'm hungry," I defended, taking a small paper bag from the cashier.

Wendell laughed. "I didn't say anything. Let's go."

We exited the warm café, heading out into the freezing morning air. A shiver ran through me, and I quickly pulled my jacket tighter around me. Luckily for us, the courtroom was just around the corner and across the street. Together Wendell and I hurried down the deserted street, keeping our heads down and away from the chilling wind. It was times like this where I wished I carried a scarf around with me.

As we turned the corner I heard the sound of Wendell exhaling quickly. Immediately my heart leapt into my throat, fearing the worst. When I glanced up, I realized the only thing that had happened was Wendell had ran into a man walking in the opposite direction. I almost laughed at my anxiousness.

"Sorry," Wendell apologized, taking a step away from the man, who was dressed in a black business suit like the guy in the café.

The man shook his head. "No worries," he responded, stepping out of the way to pass by Wendell.

Wendell started walking again, this time a little quicker. I made to follow after him, but the guy in the business suit now bumped into me, making me drop my coffee and croissant. My eyes widened in surprise as I stared at my breakfast, now lying on the ground.

"Oh no," I complained, stooping down to pick it up. "Hey Wendell—"

My call was cut off when a loud engine roar suddenly filled the air. I started, snapping back up. Wendell was now a good distance away. A scowl appeared on my face. He was always the impatient one. Couldn't he wait for me at least once? Sighing, I bent down to retrieve my breakfast.

A rush of air left my mouth when something hard suddenly slammed into my stomach, knocking the wind out of me. I doubled over, clutching my stomach and gasping. Before I could blink I was swept off my feet, my eyes now coming in contact with the sky. For a moment I was too shocked to make a sound. When whoever had me started moving, my voice came back and I screamed as loudly as I could, struggling violently.

"Wendell!" I screamed desperately, feeling hands enclose around my flailing arms. "Wendell! Help me! Someone! He—" My cries were abruptly cut off when a hand roughly covered my mouth.

Panic swelled up in me, and I soon found myself hyperventilating— which just made it more difficult to breathe since someone still had their hand clamped over my mouth. The sound of a car door opening met my ears and I was tossed violently into some type of vehicle with tinted windows. A man— the same man Wendell had bumped into— climbed in after me, slamming the door shut. There was a squeal of tires and I was knocked off the seat I landed on as the car jolted forwards.

"No!" I shrieked, pushing myself into a sitting position. "Let me out! Stop the car!"

"Shut up," the man in the suit demanded, shooting me a hard look.

"Please," I begged, terror coursing through my veins. "Who are you? Where are you taking me?"

A pair of hands suddenly landed on my shoulder, and someone's breath tickled my ear. "Boo."

My head snapped around and I came face-to-face with the person I least expected.

Sage.

"Sage?" I uttered, my eyes widening in confusion. "What are you…?"

Sage smirked at me. "Hello, Daphne!"

"What's going on?"

"Nothing much," Sage commented with a shrug. "We're going to go somewhere fun and meet someone."

I stared at him, furrowing my eyebrows. "Why didn't you just call? You scared the hell out of me! I thought I was being kidnapped!"

"You are being kidnapped though?"

It felt like a brick had dropped into my gut. "What?"

Sage leaned back, putting his hands behind his head. "This is kidnap."

"What do you mean?" I asked, feeling nervous again. "Where are we going?"

"Secret."

"Who are we meeting?"

Sage smirked. "You really want to know?"

"Duh," I responded in an irritated tone.

"It was someone you were planning on seeing today anyway."

My eyes widened slightly. He didn't mean what I thought he meant… did he? There was no way. Sage was my friend. He wouldn't…

Sage's smirk grew wider. "I think you're thinking the right person."

"Bryant?" I whispered, my heart stopping momentarily. "But he's…"

"At the special waiting place," Sage finished for me. "Surprise, Daphne! How does it feel to be betrayed?"

I stared at Sage in shock, unable to process what was happening. Betrayed? Sage was betraying me? My mouth felt dry. "All along…"

Sage nodded, leaning closer to me again. "I hate you. And Matt. You both annoy the hell out of me. Especially Matt. My original plan was to have Matt fall in love with you then take you myself, but I changed my mind. Bryant will be much more fun."

"You're kidding right?"

Sage let out a bark of laughter. "Daphne, do you honestly believe I'd go through all this effort just to scare you?"

"Yeah," I deadpanned.

Sage sobered up for a minute, looking surprised. Then his amused expression came back. "Too bad. This isn't a joke."

_**Just kidding. It is a joke. Sage's a good guy. As Curlscat knows, I've been wanting to trick you all for a while –this is kind of like my late April Fools present –besides the arthritis thing. :D I know –mood ruined, but oh well! :D This is FanFiction, so we can virtually do anything –most things, haha. XD I've probably lost a few readers, but those who kept reading –I bestow upon you a gigantic hug and ONE SPOILER QUESTION. Yes. One spoiler question. XD Now back to the story –and Sage is NOT around.**_

"_Please," I begged, terror coursing through my veins. "Who are you? Where are you taking me?"_

A pair of hands suddenly landed on my shoulder, and someone's breath tickled my ear. "Boo."

My head snapped around and I came face-to-face with the person I least expected.

Bryant.

He smirked at me, drumming his fingers on my shoulders. "Hello, Daphne."

I screamed. A long, horrified, high-pitched shriek. Bryant made a face, pulling back slightly. I screamed again, unable to process what was happening. How was Bryant in the car? He was supposed to be at the courtroom! When another scream left my lips, Bryant abruptly shoved his hand to his mouth.

"Will you shut up?" he demanded, rolling my eyes. "I know as a matter of fact my face isn't that horrible."

I cried out into his hand, bringing my own hands up to try to pull it off. However, he held fast, keeping me silent. For a split second my vision swam and I thought I was going to pass out. Horror filled me as I fought to keep myself conscious. I couldn't faint now!

"You don't need to scream, Daphne," Bryant told me. "I'm not going to hurt you."

I gave him a flat look. He chuckled, pulling his hand away. Immediately I sucked in a deep breath, trying to calm myself before I started hyperventilating again. "How are you…?" My voice cracked and I clamped my lips shut, flushing.

"It's called having back up plans," Bryant explained, rolling his eyes. "When you told me the cops were coming, I quickly made a plan with some of my followers that would help me escape, since they couldn't beat the cops to the warehouse. Let me tell you Daphne, jail is not fun."

"I hope you got used to it, because that's where you're going back to," I shot at him, glaring as hard as I could.

Bryant laughed. "I know that. But I'm not going to go down without a fight."

"A fight?"

"Not with you," Bryant assured me. "With Matt. I want to settle things with him once and for all. Last time he was at a disadvantage. I want to fight him equally."

"What does that have to do with me?"

Bryant cocked an eyebrow. "Why you're the bait of course."

"Bait?" I repeated incredulously. Bryant was seriously going to use me as bait?

"I've been doing a lot of thinking," Bryant started, leaning back into his seat. "You're just an annoying, little child. Although you may look like my Daphne, you two are nothing alike. Put nicely, you're too immature for me."

I glared at him. "I'm immature? Of course, because I go around kidnapping girls all the time!"

Bryant smirked in amusement. "See? That's what I mean. You're attitude really pisses me off."

"I don't aim to make you happy," I snapped back at him.

Bryant shrugged. "Whatever. James, get her cell for me."

James, the man in the suit, suddenly leaned closer to me. I eyed him warily, leaning away from him. As he brought himself closer to me, I moved backwards until my back hit the window. He reached a hand over and put it in my coat pocket, searching through it.

"Get away from me!" I shouted at him, trying to pull his hand away. "Don't touch me!"

He ignored my cries, checking the other pockets in my jacket. Then he moved to my pants pocket, patting them down. I struggled away from him, pushing myself to the far edge of the car. James sent me an impatient look.

"Stop touching me," I ordered, shoving my hand into my back pocket and pulling out my cell phone, then chucking it at him. "Take it."

James glowered at me as my phone hit him squarely in the neck. Bryant let out a low chuckle from behind me, reaching his hand towards James for the phone. James gave him it, sending another harsh glare towards me. I glared back, trying to look menacing, even though I was terrified.

"Shall we give Matt a little call?" Bryant inquired, flipping open my cell phone. "I'm not sure how much time we'll have before the cops find me."

Before I could reply Bryant already had the phone at his air. My heart thudded painfully in my chest as Bryant hummed quietly, waiting for Mr. Firay to pick up. I could just barely hear the sound of his phone ringing from where I was. Bryant's expression brightened when Mr. Firay's voice came through the receiver.

"Matt!" Bryant greeted him enthusiastically. "Hm? What's wrong? Cat got your tongue? Or do you not recognize who this is?" After a moment of silence Bryant let out a bark of laughter. "Do whatever you want. I'm just calling to let you know, as you so correctly guessed, I have your little Daphne with me right now. Say hello, Daphne."

I bit my tongue to stay quiet. Maybe if I didn't say anything, Mr. Firay wouldn't believe Bryant had me. Maybe he'd think Bryant only stole my phone from me. Bryant narrowed his eyes at me.

"Say hello, Daphne," he repeated in a threatening tone. I stayed silent, glaring at him. He sighed. "Okay. James."

My eyes locked onto James, who was frowning me. He reached for me and I quickly leaned away from him, watching him cautiously. He grabbed the edge of my coat, trying to tug me closer to him. I kept my mouth clamped shut, gripping onto my seat as tightly as I could. In one rough tug, I slid off the seat in his direction. His hand was suddenly wrapped in my hair, and pulled on it roughly. I bit my tongue harder, wincing in pain. Bryant gave us an impatient look.

"I assure you I have her," Bryant said into the phone, his eyes never leaving me. "She's just being a stubborn brat."

James pulled on my hair again, and once again I managed to avoid crying out in pain. However, I did bring up my arms to try to push his away. I raked my nails against his skin, causing him to his in pain and let me go. Before I could push myself away, he grabbed my arm and twisted in violently. This time a small cry of pain escaped my tightly pressed lips.

Bryant had a smug look on. "Did you hear that? Whoa there, calm down. I'm going to tell you where we are in a minute. I won't hurt her. No. Hold on." Bryant sent James a bored look. "Let her go."

James roughly shoved me away, making the armrest of my seat jam awkwardly into my back. Wincing, I pushed myself back up into my seat. Guilt washed over me as I realized now Mr. Firay would come try to save me again. My hands clenched into fists so tight that my nails dug into my skin.

"Go to the place where we first met," Bryant said into the phone. "Last time it was where I met your Daphne, so it's fitting that we meet where we first met so many years ago." Bryant went quiet for a moment, frowning. He sighed then held out my phone to me. "For you."

I quickly grabbed it, pressing it to my ear. "Mr. Firay! Don't—"

"I'm coming to get you," he interjected in a hard tone. "Try to stay safe until I get there. It should only be a few minutes, I was already going in that direction."

"Mr. Firay, don't come! He's using me as bait!"

"I don't care if you're bait for me," Mr. Firay responded, sounding irritated. "I'm coming to get you!"

My mouth went dry and my grasp on the phone tightened. "I'm sorry, Mr. Firay."

"Don't be," Mr. Firay responded. "I'm going to settle this once and for all. Then this won't ever happen again because Bryant will be dead."

My eyes widened in surprise, but before I could say anything more I heard the click that signaled he ended the call. Bryant raised an eyebrow as I lowered the phone away from my ear.

"So?" Bryant asked. "You can keep your phone now, by the way."

I glared at him. "I hate you."

He smirked. "I know."

**A/N. **You know, I was actually planning on Peter being James, but for what I have planned…I don't want you to start screaming for Peter Pan's blood. And I love Peter Pan (insert angry Puck face), so I wouldn't want to do that. :3 So James is another OC, by the way. We'll be seeing a lot of him in the next few chapters. And cursing. A bit of that, sorry. :3

Well, this ending A/N. is short because my dad's giving me a time limit. D: Chaoo!

Hasta la pasta!

~Lara


	60. Chapter 60:

**A/N.** _Oh. My. Puckin. Unicorns._

Because you guys know how grateful I am to you and how much I love you, I won't go on and on and on on how happy I am to be a part of FF. :) Highfive to GrimmGirlLover for being the 900th! Yaaarr! You get...four spoiler questions! (Man, I'm giving these away like hotcakes ;D) Congrats! Any four will be answered, just send me a PM! ^^

To any people who read part of last chapter, and stopped reading, but went ahead to read this anyways (why you'd do that, I have no idea): Sage is great. Sage is good. Bryant is horrible. Bryant is bad. It was Bryant who was in the car, and Sage wasn't there at all. :)  
>Again -I'm sorry you guys found that mean. But you guys say I should be smiley and happy, so I'll stop apologizing.<p>

...OH! Yeah, people keep asking me how long this story will be -I promise. Less than 70 chapters. Because this is gonna end...April 24, maybe? Or May 4th (you know, I love ending things on the number four ;D). Don't worry though -you have the sequel to look forward to.

Guess how interesting my week was? So Monday, I finished watching "Okamisan and Her Seven Companions" (only 12 episodes T_T) and bought the ultimate "Mastering Manga" by Mark Crilley (am currently drawing up the SG characters -Red's my fave so far) in Miami. Then Tuesday passed by. I woke up at seven on Wednesday because my sister and I had an orthodontist check up (first time kind of thing :3) and I suddenly found out I'd get braces the next day (really surprising -I thought I'd get them in the summer). I had to wake up early AGAIN (made me really mad) to get my braces on Thursday. Surprisingly, it didn't hurt that all on that day. And today, I'm rolling around my bed, groaning that my teeth ache. Oh, and I finished watching Ouran High School Host Club in two days. (SO MANY LOVE TRIANGLES! I can't decide between Tamaki and Hikaru T_T) And right now, I'm watching Toradora. :)

What I didn't really think through was that I would become limited to certain foods. It was one of those anime moments where the character become white and they become a shell of what they used to be. It's depressing that it's hard to eat, to say the least. I was practically slurping my cornbeef and rice this morning because my teeth ache. DX

So...I've had a long week. Again. :3 Enjoy chapter 60!

Reminder: It was Bryant in chapter 59 who kidnapped Daphne-Sage is a good guy with perverted jokes, remember?

**Chapter 60: Ambushed**

A shiver wracked through my body as I stood in the freezing air, my jacket doing little to stop the cold from permeating throughout my body. Bryant stood a few feet away from me, his hands shoved into his pockets. He rocked on the balls of his feet, whistling quietly to himself. Off a little ways was James, looking incredibly bored and just as cold as I felt. One more other person was standing near James- the driver of the car. It seemed that Peter got his license recently –that explained why the ride was unpleasant. He caught me staring at him and he grinned. Immediately I turned my attention to the building we were standing by. Or rather, what was left of the building.

From what I could tell, it was the skeleton of a two-floor country house. However, the place looked like it had been through hell and back. The wood that was still standing was completely black and had some weird type of moss growing on it. Two sides of the house were still standing, also covered in the weird moss. Vines grew up one side of it, all the way up to the caved in roof.

Surrounding the decimated house was thick, dense forest. It disturbingly reminded me of the old warehouse we were at only a little more than a week before. A sudden gust of wind whipped my hair around my face, blocking my vision. As I raised my hand to push it away, the sound of an engine roaring came from the distance. My head turned in the direction the sound was coming from, and a moment later Mr. Firay's car entered my vision.

"Finally," Bryant complained loudly. "I was beginning to think he wouldn't show. Eh, Daphne?"

I glared at him for a moment before returning my attention back to Mr. Firay's car, which was now coming to a stop near Bryant's vehicle. I started for the car, but Bryant gruffly grabbed my elbow, pulling me efficiently to a stop. Once more I turned my narrowed eyes to him. He held me fast as Mr. Firay climbed out of the car, not even bothering to shut the door behind him.

"Good to see you!" Bryant chirped, using his free hand to wave at him. "How was the drive?"

As soon as Mr. Firay got close enough to reach me, he grabbed my arm, forcing it out of Bryant's grasp. In a blink of an eye Mr. Firay's fist was in Bryant's face. A startled gasp escaped my lips as Mr. Firay brought his fist back and punched Bryant again, this time knocking him to the ground. Bryant smirked up at Mr. Firay, wiping the edge of his mouth, which already had blood on it. Mr. Firay struck him again, using as much force as he could.

"Three," Bryant stated, not even bothering to defend himself. "Keep them coming, Matt."

"What the hell are you counting for?" Mr. Firay demanded, pausing in his assault.

Bryant's smirk grew wider. "Why don't you let James show you?"

My eyes flew open when I felt a fist connect with my jaw. I stumbled to the side, turning to gawk at James, who was approaching me menacingly. I staggered backwards, bringing a hand up to rub my sore jaw.

"Daphne!" Mr. Firay shouted, taking a step towards me. Bryant quickly clamped his hands around Mr. Firay's ankles.

"One," he commented in a casual tone, keeping a vice-like grip on Mr. Firay.

James swung towards me again. This time I ducked to avoid his fist, but he brought his other hand up, smashing it into my gut. I doubled over, gasping in surprise. Before I had the chance to straighten myself, I once again felt a blow to my face, this time sending me sprawling into the dirt.

"Three," Bryant counted off.

"Daphne!" Mr. Firay shouted again, trying to break free from Bryant's grasp.

I stayed on the ground, sucking in as much oxygen as I could. Having the wind knocked out of me twice in one day definitely wasn't good. I waited for James to hit me again, but nothing came.

"Daphne, are you okay?" Mr. Firay shouted at me.

I turned to him, struggling to push myself off the ground. "I'm fine."

Mr. Firay turned his attention back to Bryant. "What the hell are you playing at?"

"Let's see how quick of a learner you are. You should catch on quickly- you are a teacher after all," Bryant commented, finally letting go of Mr. Firay's legs. "What will you do?"

Mr. Firay once again punched Bryant face. "Shut up!"

This time I felt James coming at me. I dodged his fist, making sure to keep an eye on his other hand so he couldn't use a cheap shot like last time. James swung his fist at me again and I barely managed to stop him from hitting my face by blocking with my arm. Pain spread through my forearm at the contact of his strike. I took his moment of surprise from my block to return one of his punches. A look of surprise crossed his face as I managed to nick him pretty good on the jaw. However, in my elation of hitting him, he ended up striking me back in the nose.

I cried out in pain, my hands automatically shooting up to my nose. When I pulled one away, I could see blood covering it. Panicking slightly, I leaned forward to let it drip out.

Mr. Firay started towards me again, but Bryant quickly grabbed him. "Four," he said in singsong voice.

"What are you counting?" Mr. Firay demanded, trying to kick his leg free. "Let go, damn it!"

"You can't figure it out?" Bryant asked in a mockingly disappointed voice. "Wow. Daphne might end up dead before you do."

I stared at Bryant in surprise. What was he talking about? And whatever happened to the not hurting me part? Mr. Firay looked at, his expression probably mimicking mine.

"What shit are you spouting out now?" Mr. Firay demanded, glaring down at Bryant. "What do you mean by that?"

Bryant shrugged. "You figure it out."

Mr. Firay stayed quiet for a moment, staring down at Bryant with a hard expression. Bryant stayed on the ground, not even attempting to stand up. There was blood trickling down the edge of his lip, much like the blood that was still coming out of my nose, staining the ground below me.

"You're a bastard, you know that Bryant?" Mr. Firay suddenly growled, bending down to grab the front of Bryant's shirt. In one swift movement, Mr. Firay had him on his feet.

"Have you figured it out?"

"What do you want?" Mr. Firay demanded, ignoring Bryant's question. "Tell me, Bryant. Before I kill you."

Bryant laughed loudly. "If you kill me, Daphne dies."

Mr. Firay scowled. "What do you want?" he repeated.

"To see you get the shit beat out of you," Bryant responded simply, losing all signs of humor. "To see you get what you deserve."

"So you're going to use dirty tricks so I won't attack you?"

Bryant cocked his head to the side. "Pretty much."

"I thought you said you were going to fight fair!" I shouted at Bryant, feeling the metallic taste of blood in my mouth.

"I lied, Daphne. You think you'd be used to lying, wouldn't you?"

Mr. Firay yanked on Bryant's shirt, bringing him closer. "If I let you have me, are you going to let Daphne go?"

Bryant glanced at me, amusement flickering in his eyes. "You want to bargain with me?" He made a tsking noise, looking back to Mr. Firay. "I don't think you have the power to do that, Matt. I have the upper hand."

To prove Bryant's point, James grabbed me by the hair, yanking my head back. A cry of pain escaped my lips before I could clamp them shut. Just as I was about to retaliate at James, he let go of my hair. I quickly smoothed down my hair, taking a wary step away from him.

"What are you going to do with her?" Mr. Firay growled, his shoulders tensed.

"You really want to know?" Bryant asked. "Well first I'd punish her for landing me in jail... but actually, I was planning to do that with you still conscious-"

"Punish me?" I repeated incredulously. "Because you were in jail where you belong?"

Mr. Firay sent me a warning look. "Daphne, quiet."

"Daphne, jail sucks," Bryant responded simply. "And it's your fault I was there. You and your little antics."

"You belong there!"

"Daphne!"

"What?" I demanded, giving a hard look to Mr. Firay.

He returned my look with the same expression. "Stop talking back to him!"

"You're sticking up for me? Aw, thank you!" Bryant said, grinning. "But it's okay. That's what I like about this Daphne- she's feisty. It'll be fun when I..." Bryant paused, for a second. "Well, I rather not ruin the surprise."

"You're not touching her, Bryant," Mr. Firay stated threateningly. "If I don't kill you now, you're going back to jail."

"Kill me?" Bryant repeated with a scoff. "What makes you think you can kill me? I have back up."

Mr. Firay glanced at James, then at Peter. An amused expression flickered across his face. "I can handle them."

Bryant narrowed his eyes, but there was also an amused tone to his voice. "You sound confident. Tell you what, Matt. Let's fight one-on-one. Fairly."

"How can I trust you?"

Bryant glanced over to James. "James, go wait with Peter."

James grunted in response, moving away from me. He walked over to Peter and stood by his side, still looking menacing. With both of the other men a safe distance away from me, I felt more relieved. However the tense atmosphere between Mr. Firay and Bryant still kept me on edge.

"Alright," Bryant started, turning back to Mr. Firay. "Regular rules?"

Mr. Firay crossed his arms. "One-on-one rules. That means no help, and no involving bystanders." He sent a pointed look at me. "If you as much as take five steps in her direction, I'll resort to dirty tactics."

"Done and done," Bryant responded, taking a few steps away from me. "See? I'm moving away."

"Then let's get started," Mr. Firay said, clenching his hands into fists. "Last time we fought it took two minutes and forty-three seconds for you to go down. Let's see if I can beat my record."

Bryant chuckled. "You were always so sure of yourself, Matt." On the word Matt, Bryant sent his fist flying in Mr. Firay's direction.

A startled gasp left my lips as Mr. Firay narrowly dodged. Bryant swung out again, his eyes glued on Mr. Firay. Mr. Firay evaded the attack and countered, but Bryant quickly blocked it. After his block, he quickly brought his fist across, nicking Mr. Firay's nose.

"Mr. Firay!" I cried out, taking a step towards him.

"Daphne, don't come closer!" he shouted back, never taking his eyes of Bryant. "Go to the car-"

"Nope," Bryant interjected, glancing at me quickly. "Daphne, you stay there. If you try to go to the car, James and Peter will stop you."

Mr. Firay paused, his fists still at ready. "Why can't she leave?"

"You might not win," Bryant responded simply.

Mr. Firay cast his fist towards Bryant's face, but Bryant eluded it by leaning backwards. They continued a small match of swing and dodge for a few minutes. Neither of them landing any hits, nor having one landed on them. My stomach twisted uncomfortably every time Bryant came close to landing one on Mr. Firay. Bryant suddenly caught Mr. Firay's fists, quickly bending Mr. Firay's arm behind him. I gasped, wincing at the sharp twist of his limb.

"I say, Matt, jail really took a lot out of you, huh?" Bryant commented casually, forcing Mr. Firay's arm further against his back. "First you let me hit you with a shovel, and now you let me catch your arm."

Mr. Firay stayed silent, bending over with his arm so it wouldn't break. My heart was in my mouth as I watched helplessly. I wasn't expecting Bryant to get the upper hand in the fight. Without warning, Bryant briskly flipped Mr. Firay over his shoulder. Mr. Firay landed on the ground with a hard thump, emitting a small groan. Bryant stepped over him, putting a foot on each of his arms.

"Having trouble, Matt?" Bryant asked teasingly.

"I'm fine, thank you," Mr. Firay responded in the same tone.

Bryant smirked. Mr. Firay let out a huff of air, his arms twitching under Bryant's feet. It wasn't that hard to figure out Bryant was trying to crush Mr. Firay's fist. My eyes were glued to Bryant as he continued to smile smugly down at Mr. Firay. It didn't seem like he was going to stop until he broke Mr. Firay's wrists. A sick feeling spread throughout me as I stood by ineptly, unable to do anything to help.

"Does it hurt?" Bryant inquired when Mr. Firay let out a small groan. "I remember how you always used to be wary of your wrists. You never liked them being touched."

Bryant lifted one of his feet off of Mr. Firay's wrist. Relief washed over me- until Bryant abruptly brought his foot back down, stomping on Mr. Firay's wrist. A cry of surprise left my lips as Mr. Firay cried out in pain. Bryant lifted his foot up to do it again.

"Stop!" I shouted, watching him in horror. "Bryant! Stop!"

Bryant spared me a single glance before grinding his heel into Mr. Firay's wrist. "Sorry, Daphne. This is a fight."

"Damn it," Mr. Firay groaned, trying to pull his arm out from under Bryant.

My feet started moving before I had even told them to run. When Bryant went to stomp on Mr. Firay's other wrist, I leapt at him, tacking him to the ground, and off of Mr. Firay. We landed hard, Bryant somehow ending on top of me, and crushing me into the ground. His eyes were wide in surprise as he stared down at me, caught off guard.

"What are you doing?" he growled, putting his hand on either side of me, and trying to push himself back onto his feet.

I quickly wrapped my arms and legs around him, trying to keep him on the ground. His arms gave out from under him, and once more we fell back to the ground. Bryant scowled at me, trying to pry my arms off him.

"This is a one-on-one fight," Bryant enlightened me, pushing up from the ground again, taking me with him. "No help from bystanders. Or else we turn to dirty tactics."

I gave him a confused look, trying to figure out what he meant by that. What were dirty tactics to fighting? Bryant pulled his arms out from under him and my back hit the hard ground roughly, causing me to exhale sharply. Bryant gave me a knowing look.

"If you don't let go of me, I'll keep doing that."

"No you won't," a new voice interrupted. "Daphne let him go."

I shook my head. "No, Mr. Firay, you-"

"Let him go," Mr. Firay repeated, his tone hard. "Now."

Reluctantly, I released Bryant from my hold, holding my breath while he hovered over me. Mr. Firay appeared in my field of vision, and he kicked Bryant off me. Bryant rolled, swinging both his legs out, and somehow knocking Mr. Firay over. He landed half on me, half on Bryant. Bryant got a tight grasp on him, flipping him onto his back. I scrambled out from under his legs, reaching over, and grabbing Bryant's head. He growled in annoyance, letting go of Mr. Firay to grab my arm. Mr. Firay used this chance to rectify himself. As soon as Bryant shoved me away from him, Mr. Firay shoved Bryant back to the ground, straddling him. Bryant gave Mr. Firay a disgruntled look while Mr. Firay pressed down on Bryant's collarbone.

"Are you ready to die?" Mr. Firay questioned, moving his hands to Bryant's throat.

Bryant laughed humorlessly. "You can't kill me, Matt."

"What makes you say that?"

Bryant's eyes trailed over to me. "Shouldn't you keep an eye on Daphne, too?"

My arms were suddenly tugged behind me, bending backwards painfully. I glanced behind me to see Peter grinning at me. He yanked on my arms harder, making me take a quick inhale of breath.

"What are you planning on doing?" I heard Mr. Firay demand.

"I'll leave that up to your imagination," Bryant responded in a wicked tone. "I'll give you a hint. Remember with the other Daphne-"

I turned back to the pair just in time to see Mr. Firay smash his fist into the side of Bryant's head. "You're a bastard," he growled, grabbing the front of Bryant's shirt to pull him up, only to punch him down again.

"Mr. Firay!" I called, trying to pull myself free. "Wait-"

He ignored me, continuing to pummel Bryant who lay exposed underneath him. Bryant didn't even bring up his arms to protect his face. It made me nervous. Why wasn't Bryant fighting back? Why was he just letting Mr. Firay batter him? Eventually Mr. Firay stopped hitting him, relaxing his shoulders.

"Why aren't you fighting back?" he asked.

Bryant shrugged, but before he could answer, a loud shout came from behind me. Mr. Firay's head snapped towards the noise, but I couldn't turn to look because Peter still had his hold on me.

"Bryant! The cops are on their way!"

Bryant's head turned towards the new voice, his face hardening. "What? How?"

"A little friend named Sage," Mr. Firay informed him, rolling his eyes. "Did you really think I'd come here unprepared, Bryant?"

Bryant narrowed his eyes. "Shit! We're out of time. Send out the others."

My eyes widened. The others? What others? Peter wrenched me around, making me face the old, rundown building. My heart stopped beating when I saw many men filing out the broken down door. At least seven of them came out, all looking intimidating and ominous.

"I told you I had back up," I heard Bryant comment. "I'll let them take care of you."

**A/N.** All right. Starting next chapter, I'm going to reply to reviews again. Hopefully I'll reply to (almost) all of them by the time the story ends –I can't reply to those anons after the story finishes. :3 Next update: **Sunday **(like, usual)

Any Ouran HSHC lovers? I just finished watching it! And (I think it was EoT who pointed it out) I _do _see the similarities between that anime and FTFT. :D That's so cool. But yeah –if you like anime, PM me! It's so much fun –I'm talking about Hetalia with and it's just…_fun _being random. :D I've recently watched, like, three animes within this year so far, so I'm going to add them to the list on my profile. Any recommendations?

Also! HELP WANTED: I have to make this poster thing in Social Studies class. We're all assigned an Amendment (I have the 12th one) and we have to draw something for it. My teacher said something that kind of describes it. I'm only looking for ideas (not answers, lol XD), so if you'd be nice enough to help, that'd be great. Here's some info if you'd like:

The 12th Amendment: Election of President and Vice President;  
><em>"The Electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves; they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and all persons voted for as Vice-President and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate." <em>~Cited from LawsConstitution(dot)com: An Overview of the 12th Amendment. (I don't want an plagiarism problems so this is exactly from the source –and I do not own anything)

I'm thinking of having two people labeled "President Candidates" and another two labeled "Vice President Candidates" with gaggles of people surrounding them (they have name tags which read the states names), each holding these boxes with two buttons on top of each of them (the President and Vice President they're voting for), but I don't know. It seems like I won't have much time for it (the due date is next Friday, but I'm busy next week –getting ready for Finals), so if you think you have a really good idea, share it. :D

…Man, I sound like _I'm _the one giving work. You really don't have to.

Now. My braces are hurting, so I'm going to go gargle some salt water. See you **Sunday!**

~Lara


	61. Chapter 61:

**A/N. **I know you're thinking, "_OMG! LARA UPDATED EARLY! YAAAYY!" _(just kidding) I know, surprise, surprise! ^^ The reason why I'm not updating tomorrow, and have this for today is because I have a fever. So does my sister. And my brother. And my mom. And we all got it from our dad. So, we feel awful. My dad said none of us will use computers, iPads, iPhones –nothing. And we can only watch TV after naps for an hour. So, internally, I screamed, "_Are you kidding me?" _So, that's why I updated today. :3

For those of you who know I have a deviantArt, I uploaded two pictures I drew of Red and Daphne –_with a scanner. _Finally. So if you want to check it out, just type in the URL: imagine0139 (dot) deviantart (dot) com. And click the Gallery and go to "Featured". ^^

All right. We're going to get more action in this chapter (YIPPEEEE!) and a bit of horror (no, Bryant is not a zombie, nor is he Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named, nor is he Voldemart) at the end. But on the bright side –we get some Sage. Yay!

**Chapter 61: Don't Sleep**

I began to struggle in Peter's grasp as the men disappeared from my view, heading towards Bryant and Mr. Firay. Peter held me tighter, snickering. "I'm not letting you go," he told me.

I ignored him, twisting as violently as I could. Bryant said something incoherent from behind me, and I heard the first sound of a punch landing in a hand. Then another sound— this time of a punch landing on a chest. I struggled harder, growing frantic. Even if Mr. Firay was an Everafter, he couldn't take on eight men at the same time.

"If you're that desperate to see your hero get beat up, I'll let you watch," Peter said, twisting me around again. "Here."

My eyes landed on Mr. Firay, who was being held still by four of the men. The other four men were standing in front of him, looking threatening. Bryant was standing to the side, wiping the blood off his face. I watched in horror as one of the men standing in front of Mr. Firay brought a fist to his face. Before it landed, I turned away, unable to watch.

"Do you want to count the punches with me?" Peter inquired. "That's one…" There was another smack, making me wince again. "Two."

"So, Matt, I hope you enjoy jail as much as I did," Bryant commented. "I'm very aware about the fact that you'll go back to jail if you were caught up in a gang problem."

My head snapped back to Mr. Firay just in time to see him get slammed in the face. "Stop it!" I shouted, trying to move towards him. "Mr. Firay!"

"Are you going to answer me, Matt?" Bryant asked, moving towards Mr. Firay.

The three men in front of Mr. Firay moved to the side to let Bryant through. Bryant stopped in front of Mr. Firay, bringing his head closer to him. He said something I couldn't hear. Without any warning, Mr. Firay elbowed two of the men holding him in the face, they both went down, and as they were going down Mr. Firay smashed them for the second time. Then, before I could blink, he sent his fist straight into Bryant's jaw, knocking him to the ground. Mr. Firay then moved forward to attack him again, but all five other men were on him in a flash.

"Mr. Firay!" I screamed as he was knocked to the ground. "No!"

While Mr. Firay was on the ground, the men surrounding him began to kick him violently. My heart thudded painfully in my chest as I watched him be beaten. I thrashed violently in Peter's arms, trying to break free.

"Stop it!" I shrieked again, watching as one of the men aimed a kick to his face. "Please! Stop!"

No one even glanced at me. Peter chuckled. "You may just get to watch him die."

"Bryant! Bryant! Please!"

Bryant turned to me, still lying on the ground. An amused grin spread across his face. "What? I can't hear you Daphne."

"Please, stop them!" I screamed at him, my throat already feeling raw. "Please!"

"What?"

"Stop them, Bryant! Please!"

"What? Hurt him more?" Bryant responded, feigning confusion. "If you say so…"

My eyes widened. "No!"

Mr. Firay let out a groan as someone stomped on his chest. When Mr. Firay tried to pull the leg off him, another person kicked his arms away. I felt like I was going to be sick.

"Oh, that looks like it hurts," Peter commented.

Angrily, I brought back my head to smash it in his chest. He must have had his head down, because I felt my head bang against his jaw. This caused him to relax his grip on me, and I was able to twist out of it. When he went to grab me again, I brought my knee up to his crotch. Instead of him falling down like I expected him to, he grabbed my hair, yanking my head back.

"You bitch," he growled, pulling me closer to him.

Once again I brought my head back into him. He groaned in pain, letting me go for the second time. Without hesitating, I burst forward, heading towards the men surrounding Mr. Firay. I shoved through them, throwing myself on top of Mr. Firay. One of the men kicked my side, causing me to cry out in pain.

"Stop it!" I heard Bryant shout. "Don't hit her!"

Immediately the men backed up, leaving me breathless on top of Mr. Firay. He stared up at me, his eyes wide. Blood was tricking from the corners of his lips, and there was already a large bruise on top left of his forehead. He shut his eyes for a moment, a heavy sigh escaping his lips.

"Move," I heard Bryant order gruffly and a few seconds later there was a pair of legs in front of me. I looked up to see Bryant glaring down at me. "Get up, Daphne."

"No."

"Now."

I shook my head stubbornly, wrapping my arms around Mr. Firay. "No."

Bryant gave me a hard look. "Daphne, either you move away from him, or you're just going to have to be beat up with him."

"I'm not moving," I told Bryant, holding onto Mr. Firay harder. "I'm not leaving Matt."

Bryant glared at me for another moment before letting out a deep sigh. "Fine. I'll tell them not to ruin your pretty face. Okay, boys?"

There was a low chuckle throughout the group surrounding us. I shut my eyes, dropping my head onto Mr. Firay's chest, preparing myself. The slow rise and fall of his chest as he breathed calmed me.

"Daphne," he whispered in a pained voice. "Don't—"

"I'm staying," I responded stubbornly, feeling my eyes begin to burn. "This is my fault. I'm not letting you do this alone."

There was the sound of shuffled footsteps as the men came closer to us. I held my breath, waiting for the pain. Before I felt any though, there was a low swear from Bryant. Mr. Firay turned his head, a relieved expression coming onto his face. My first thought was that the police had come, and I just hadn't heard their car. I turned too, letting out a sigh of relief. When my eyes landed on Sage, Wendell, and two other men I didn't know, my heart stopped.

Each of the men had a gun. Sage had his pointed at Bryant, Wendell had his pointed at the man closest to me, and the other two men were alternating their gunpoint between the other gang members.

"Sorry I'm late," Sage commented with a grin. "It took a little time to hunt down the backups."

Mr. Firay gave a low chuckle. "You made it just in time."

"I thought you said the police were coming!" Bryant shouted at the man closest to me. "Not these guys!"

"Oh, they police are coming," Wendell assured Bryant. "But we were already five minutes away when we called them. No service," he added when Mr. Firay gave him an annoyed look.

I stared at Wendell in alarm. Why was he here? Out of all the people in the world to being here, Sage brought Wendell? Who had been attacked by Bryant before? Who had probably never held a gun in his life before? When Wendell noticed I was staring at him, he sent me a small grin.

"Now," Sage started in an authoritive tone. "Move away from Daphne and Matt, or we'll shoot."

Immediately the men surrounding us moved backwards, putting up their hands in surrender. Bryant swore again, but also took a few steps away from us. Mr. Firay gently pushed me off him, climbing to his feet. He then pulled me to my feet, holding me up until I gained my balance. I smoothed out my shirt, wincing as my hand brushed my now bruised side.

Mr. Firay grabbed my arm, pulling me into his chest. He wrapped his arms around me, squeezing me hard. "Daphne, don't ever try to protect me again, okay? I don't know what I'd do if you got hurt again because of me."

I frowned slightly. "But_ you_ were getting hurt because of _me_…"

"I can handle it though," Mr. Firay responded, pulling me away so he could grin at me. "You, on the other hand, are a little more fragile."

I blushed slightly. Mr. Firay sighed lightly. "Your blush is so calming, Daphne."

I blushed darker. "What?"

Bryant cleared his throat loudly. "Aren't you two cute?"

"I hope you're ready to go back to jail," Mr. Firay said, turning to smirk at Bryant. "Quite the change of events, huh?"

Bryant glared at him. "I should have known you would rely on others to help."

"That's what friends are for," Mr. Firay responded with a shrug. "Oh wait. You don't have friends. You have _followers_. And now your followers are useless."

Bryant rolled his eyes. "This isn't over yet."

"Yes, it is," Mr. Firay responded with an air of finality.

"Matt!" Sage called to Mr. Firay, his gun still on Bryant. "Do you have anything we can tie these guys up with?"

Mr. Firay nodded. "Yeah, I have some rope."

"Where?"

"Daphne, in the trunk of my car is some rope," Mr. Firay told me, nodding towards it. "Go get it so we can tie these guys up."

I nodded, shakily taking a few steps towards his car before bursting into a full out sprint. When I reached the car I quickly popped the trunk, grabbing the rope that was piled up at the bottom of it. I turned back to where Mr. Firay was, trying to wind the rope up so I wouldn't trip on it. Mr. Firay was by Sage now, who still had his gun pointed towards Bryant. Wendell had moved over to where the two other men I didn't know were, and together they were keeping an eye on the rest of Bryant's followers. My eyes swept around for Peter, and I found him passed out on the ground a few feet away from me. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. When had that happened?

"Daphne! The rope!" Sage called back to me. "You're so slow!"

"I'm coming!" I responded, tossing it over my shoulder and marching towards them. "Jeez! I don't want it to be tang…"

I trailed off, feeling a hand enclose on my upper arm, pulling me to a stop. My eyes widened in surprise, and I turned my head to see James behind me. He sent me a hard look.

"This wasn't supposed to happen," James commented in a low voice. "But now I have no choice."

Something sharp entered my field of vision as James brought his arm around me. My breath caught in my throat when I felt smooth, cool metal press against my throat. I went rigid, holding my breath tightly.

"All of you, drop your guns or she gets it," James threatened. "There's poison on this knife. And I don't believe you have healing magic, do you, Matt?"

All four men with guns exchanged surprised looks. Wendell lowered his gun a fraction of an inch.

"Don't drop them!" I screamed at him.

"But Daphne—"

"Don't!"

"I advise they do it," James said loudly.

"Drop your guns," Mr. Firay ordered, turning to Sage.

I glared at him in frustration. "No! Don't do it!"

Sage looked between Mr. Firay and me for a moment, looking torn between us. He lowered his hand the slightest bit like Wendell had, and I heaved a frustrated groan.

"Times up."

An odd sensation ran through my stomach. For a second, I was too bewildered to have a reaction. My eyes dropped down to my stomach, where the handle of a knife could be seen. I dropped the rope, raising my shaky hands up to the handle. I touched it gently, and a scream tore through my throat as a horrible, burning sensation suddenly spread through my midriff. I screamed again, falling to my knees, causing the knife to shift inside me. More shrieks came from my mouth as I looked up at James in terror. He had another knife in his other hand.

"Daphne!" a panicked voice I recognized as Wendell's shouted. "Daphne! Oh my god! Stop him!"

James's eyes never left my face. He brought down the knife. Before it could come in contact with my skin, a loud crack sounded. James's shot open and he stumbled backwards, dropping the knife. He dropped to the ground with a loud shout of pain.

I slowly turned my head towards the group, tears blurring my vision. My gut felt like it was on fire. My vision swayed for a moment, but when I focused I noticed Mr. Firay was running towards me. Everyone else was just looking at me with a horrified expression. My eyes landed on Bryant and another scream escaped me— this time due to panic.

"Mr. Firay!" I shrieked in terror.

With all the attention on me, Bryant had somehow managed to pull out a gun, and he was now pointing it at Mr. Firay. Panicking, I looked all around for something to help with. Peter's body was just a few inches away from me. Immediately I spotted Merlin's Wand. I began to reach towards it and the tension it put on my stomach caused a great deal of pain, but I continued anyway. My hand closed around the handle and I yanked it back, fumbling with it until I had a good grip on it.. I turned back to Mr. Firay, who was only a few feet away from me now.

"Daphne, what are you doing?" he started, coming to a stop a few feet away from me.

"Don't stop!" I screamed at him, seeing Bryant aim his gun. I aimed my weapon, too, my quavering hand making it difficult to fix my aim on him. I tried to concentrate even though I was filled with terror.

"Why not—"

There was a slight movement from Bryant's hand. My heart jumped into my chest when I realized he was about to shoot Mr. Firay. Closing my eyes tightly, I slighty waved the wand. "_Gimme some magic."_ A sharp bang rang in my ears, like a real gun, and my hand flew back from the force. I dropped the wand, gasping in surprise. When I finally opened my eyes again, Bryant was on the ground, shouting in pain.

"Matt!" Sage shouted in panic.

My eyes snapped up to Mr. Firay, who was staring forwards in surprise. His gaze dropped to his side, and my eyes followed. A small groan escaped my lips when I realized he was covered in blood. Mr. Firay furrowed his eyebrows, taking a few steps towards me. He dropped to the ground when he was next to me, putting a hand on his side.

"Mr. Firay," I started in a hoarse whisper. "Bryant… Bryant shot you."

"I'm fine," he told me, his jaw clenched. "Wendell, call an ambulance."

"I— I already did," Wendell responded in a terrified voice. "Are you okay, Firay?"

Mr. Firay took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I'm fine. Daphne, I need to put pressure on your wound."

My eyes widened. "What?"

"I'm sorry," he apologized, leaning back, and taking of his shirt.

I tried to prepare myself for the pain. As soon as Mr. Firay's hands touched my midriff the burning sensation returned and a gasp of pain left my lips. I tried to push him away, but he kept his hands pressed to my wound. I twisted uncomfortably, groaning as the knife inside me twisted with me.

"Take the knife out," I begged.

"I can't."

"Yes you can!"

"If I do you might bleed to death!"

"But Mr. Firay," I panted, closing my eyes, "it hurts!"

"I know," he responded, sounding pained.

"Help," I begged, not knowing what else to say.

"We have to stop the blood," Mr. Firay told me in a tight voice. "Hold on."

I groaned in pain when I felt the pressure against my midriff increase. "Stop! That hurts!"

"I have to, Daphne."

"No! Stop!"

"Daphne, please!" Mr. Firay nearly shouted. "I have to!"

My eyes opened as I saw Mr. Firay staring down at me, his expression filled with pain. His eyes were glazed over as he pressed his hands into my stomach, trying to stop the blood flow. My eyes watered as I took in his expression.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, dropping his head. "I'm sorry, Daphne. I have to do this."

"Am I going to die?" I asked, closing my eyes again.

"You're not going to die," Mr. Firay told me in a hard tone. "Just hold on a few more minutes, the ambulance will be here."

"What about the police?"

"They'll be here too."

"Will they take you?"

Mr. Firay was silent. "I don't know."

"You're hurt though." My heart rate increased again. "They won't take you to jail if you're hurt will they?"

"No, they won't," Mr. Firay assured me. "Daphne, calm down."

I reached up my hand towards the sound of his voice. After a moment I felt a hand enclose on mine and pull it back down to the ground. Tears formed behind my closed eyes again as I gripped onto his hand as tightly as they could.

"Don't leave," I murmured.

"I'm not going to," he responded quietly. "I'll always be here, Daphne. I love you."

I winced as he shifted the pressure on my midriff. "I love you too."

The sounds of sirens in the distance suddenly filled my hearing. Mr. Firay let out a deep sigh of relief. I relaxed too, suddenly feeling sleepy. I let go of Mr. Firay's hand, dropping mine to the ground, too tired to hold my arm up anymore.

"Daphne?"

"Mm?"

"Daphne, stay awake," he ordered me. "Come on, open your eyes."

I shook my head. "I'm tired."

"Daphne, you need to stay awake."

"No."

Mr. Firay gently shook my shoulder. "Come on, Daphne. Open your eyes. Don't sleep."

"Stop it," I muttered, turning my head to the side.

"Daphne!" Mr. Firay said loudly. "Just stay awake, okay?"

I mumbled something incoherent, not fully aware of what I was saying. Weariness washed over me, but I tried to fight it off. I wanted to make sure Mr. Firay would be okay. It was a tough feat. Mr. Firay said something to me, but it sounded garbled with the noise of sirens in the background. I drifted in and out of unconsciousness, struggling to open my eyes again. Finally I gave up, just as I felt the pressure on my stomach disappear. All noises were shut out as I drifted off into complete darkness.

**A/N. ** After I went swimming with my siblings on Friday and finished this chapter, I realized that I can't reply to every anon. and non-anon. reviewer separately. So! For this chapter, I will reply to reviews both anon and non-anon so my inbox may breathe again. One full page that's in my inbox (I have like, four pages full of reviews. :3). Well, almost full –I'm so sick (It's a wonder that this chapter came out nicely) and I'm tired. D:

Let's Begin!

**PenguinLoverGurl, Chapter 55:** Aw, thank you! ^^ Lol –did you know Ellen has made a lot of people take their shirts off? I thought that was funny when I saw, "Alex Pettyfer Takes Off His Shirt On Ellen!" XD Lol –be flattered. It's good to be. **A duh! **If I'm a Filipina –which I am- I should go to the Philippines at least once in my life –in my case, I've lost track. :D Lol –if I wasn't Filipino, who do you think I'd be? Japanese? Chinese? Haha, thanks! ^^

**PenguinLoverGirl, Chapter 57: **Haha, I tricked you. XD Hahha –I am lucky you survived. Your reviews are awesome. Haha –nice reasons. True that –on Peter Bieber. Grr. Miley Cyrus ruined her career, she really did. Lol –It's Pe-rrry! Perry the Pla-ty-pus! Lol, all right. OH! Thanks! ^^ Aww, thank you! May the Lord bless and shine on both you and your loved ones, too!

**Airene Archerway, Chapter 35: **Lol –I saw the video. That was funny. XD Hahaha, lucky you!

**Airene Archerway, Chapter 32: **Shaine and Sairi are adorable. :D Lol –really? WOW. My brother's only 7, and my sister's 8, haha. Yes, you're right –Sairi, eight; Sage; twenty. Lol, you can PM me your Twitter if you'd like. :D Hahaha, Meanie Meatball? XD Hahaha –same thing for me and my friend. :D We're both pretty smart, too. Thanks!

**Airene Archerway, Chapter 29: **Ah! I did? MUST FIX. Thanks! :D Owwww. I got hit in the face with a football –my glasses almost broke. :D Lol, Finnick's awesome. Hahaha, true –that's why I have MSeed this way. :D Thanks!

**Airene Archerway, Chapter 24: **Lol –Daphnerseed, yes. :DHahaha, that's good. It works out in the end. :D Hahaha! What do you think of One Direction? Oh, you didn't get into too much trouble, right? Well, I'm glad you liked the pizza sticks thing. :D It was fun to write.

**Airene Archerway, Chapter 22: **Hahaha –I love Sour Cream. He _is _awesome. I love him so much. XD Hahah, well, after this story's over, she'll probably call him Matt. Hahah, really? I don't like cleaning very much. Oops, haha. :D I'll fix that. Thanks!

**Airene Archerway, Chapter 17: **Wendell is pretty awesome. Oh, thanks for pointing that out! ^^ Wendell doesn't have a girlfriend, lol. XD

**Airene Archerway, Chapter 16: **That's all right. :D Yep –that'd be really bad if Wendell still liked her. They can stop aging, and start aging –but they can't get younger. :D Poor Wendell and Gale. Hahah –I'm glad you found that funny. Thanks! ^^

**Airene Archerway, Chapter 7: **Yes, she does. :D Lol –true that. All right! And MANY similarities, my friend. Many. ;D Lol –too bad they're real minor characters. Lol –puppy eyes! Hahah, all right. A-durr. :D I did? Thanks for pointing that out.

**Airene Archerway, Chapter 5: **Not really. :D Hahaha –I will, in the future. :D But the kiss was cute, yes? XD Oh, sorry I haven't posted it –I don't think I will, actually. Just because I think it'll ruin Mark of Athena for me. But maybe I'll do a one-shot or something… Yes, I am thinking, "Why the tartarus do like a crazy teddy-bear slaughtering freak? Haha! You're just like Estrangelo Edessa -she loves Moth. Actually, check out her story, "Hell Hath No Fury Like A Woman Scorned". She hasn't updated in awhile, but it's really good. Everyone says she's a Mary Sue. Could you point our Piper's Mary Sue-ness to me? LEO IS FRIGGIN AWESOME! My dad's name is Leo. :D Actually his friends call him Yoyong (Filipino thing), hee hee. But yeah –OMG! There's this picture of him on deviantArt; he's holding a ball of fire and in the background, it says, "This is why I'm hot." XD Thanks!

**Airene Archerway, Chapter 2: **Lol, at least you're reviewing now. XD Hahaha. :D That's all right –the amount of reviews made me SERIOUSLY happy. Really? That's cool –your friends read FFs. My friends used to, but now most of them are interested in makeup, weird sounding music, weird dancing, and boys. Bleh. (Well, people like Sage and Mr. Firay aren't bleh. ;D) Thanks! Yeah, it was pretty obvious, heehee. But that's a good thing –it shows you're not dumb. :D You're not weird –everyone's just unique. XD Haha –I like Ariana, too. Sigh! Gasp! XD Well, to keep it mysterious –Puck just can't make pizza.

**killer bunnies, Chapter 57: **That's all right -2 reviews is the maximum. :D Lol –arthritis is like…it's makes your movements limited. Like, being paralyzed…sorta. :D Hahah, I can't believe I got you, though. Sage is really great, isn't he? XDDD My mom wouldn't do that either. :D I liked that part, too! *highfive* Boo Kristen Stewart! And Peter Bieber, kinda. (I don't really have anything against him, but there are so many people fussing over him.) Lol, goodnight!

**Puckabrina-Percabeth-Fax101, Chapter 57: **It's not annoying at all, my friend. :D Aw, thanks a lot –that means gravy to me. ;D I can't believe you got your friends on this story…thanks! …A pregnant Sabrina? Hmmm… *grin grin grin* Maaybe. Lol! I'm not annoyed –really. :D Thanks!

**Curlscat, Chapter 57: **AHH! I'M SO SORRY! We're going to work on it! I'll send it to you –promise. Lol –I know, that was OOC, but she can trust Daphne, can't she? :D Lol. Thanks! Grrr- I'll fix it. Mr. Secretive Grocer is a very funny man. XD Oh, thanks –I'll fix that. Haha, thanks! Bahamas.

All right. There was a lot more, but I'm sick and I'm shivering. Sorry I haven't replied to all. Pray for me, you guys. I really hate feeling sick.

And I'm sorry this was such a cliffy –you'll forgive me next chapter. Promise. It has fluff and lots of humor. And sorry this was so cheesy –I couldn't eat it because of my braces. ;D

**Until Friday!**

~Lara


	62. Chapter 62:

**A/N.** I. Should. Be. Flogged.

I'm so sorry for not updating yesterday! I started writing the chapter last night and I fell asleep. I was out all day with my family, so I didn't get to go back to the chapter until now. D: I can't express how sorry I am. I broke that promise. T-T

Buttttttt, I did go to the library to get all the SG books. I'm planning to re-read the books in time for the new book to come out. (Actually, I got an email saying it would be released April 24, so I'm pre-ordering it RIGHT now...OMG! I JUsT DID! AHAA! I'M SO HAPPEE!) ^^ Right now, Sabrina's giving her speech to the Everafters in the Golden Egg.

And as I'm re-reading, I have made a revelation.

Titania's hair was _brown! _Not blonde!

*facepalm*

And I have a crush on Uncle Jake. I'm creepy.

And I have the sudden urge to draw Mustardseed and his leather-jacket, boot-wearing, gang-looking friends. Who have baseball hats.

And Moth -oh, yes. I found out she's a blonde, so I must draw up a new Moth...

*coughs* I have no idea why I'm in such a good mood -adurrrr, SG!- but I'll be replying to anons at the bottom, thank heavens. And I'm going to -I keep telling myself even though I don't listen- reply to signed-in in PMs. I'm really determined to, now.

Sorry this is utterly long, but one more thing: If you're tired of the mushiness, the lovey-dovey-ness, and the OOC-ness of this story, you can just walk away, you know? This is to 'decline' and 'FFF'. As they say, "Don't Like? Don't Read." ^^ It's as simple as that. I thank you for your honest opinions, of course. :)

**Warning: Fluff and laughing and rolling on the floor be ahead, maties! Arrrgh!**

There. I warned you. :) Also, I'll be giving you guys a surprise -I hope you like the Grimm family's final appearance in FTFT next chapter.

Oh, and this is _not _–**I REPEAT, NOT- **the ending chapter. We have maybe…two more to go, my friends.

**Chapter 62: Smile**

Noises and light. A bright, constant, blinding light. The noises were far off and sluggish. I attempted to focus on them, but no matter how hard I tried, they were still incoherent and garbled. An odd, unfamiliar scent was filling my nose. I struggled to move, but my body felt liked it weighed a thousand pounds. The more I strived to at least lift my hand, the heavier I felt.

There was more pressure on my right arm then my left- at least I thought it was my arm. In my state, I couldn't be sure. I didn't even know where I was. Or why I couldn't make out the noises I could hear. Or where the blinding light that was starting to get on my nerves was coming from.

I struggled to force my eyes open. For all I knew, I could have been kidnapped again. Maybe something had gone wrong and Bryant somehow got away again. The thought sent alarm through me. With new resolve, I finally managed to force my eyes open- only to close them again when an even more glaring light than the first blinded me.

After blinking a few times to get my eyes adjusted to the light, I began to take in my surroundings. White walls, white curtains, white ceiling... I turned my head to the side and my gaze landed on a large machine producing a beeping noise. A startled gasp escaped my lips when I realized I was in a hospital. Relief then washed over me- that meant I was safe.

My gaze dropped down my arm, where an I.V was attached to my wrist. Making a face, I quickly turned away from it. Needles weren't my thing. My eyes widened when I took in my other arm. There were no needles, but something else instead- or should I say someone else. Mr. Firay was dead asleep on my arm, his head resting against my hip.

I tried to sit up, but found it took way too much strength. Giving up, I fell back down the inch I had managed to rise. A scratchy groan escaped my lips as my landing sent my head pounding. Why was I so tired? I squeezed my eyes shut tightly, trying to remember what happened. James had stabbed me, and then I shot magic at Bryant, and then what...? Did I pass out?

The arm Mr. Firay was sleeping on started to tingle uncomfortably. After a moment it turned into a painful prickle, like needles being poked into my skin. I slowly clenched and unclenched my fists, trying to wake my arm back up. It wasn't working. Mr. Firay needed to move.

"Mr. Firay?" I blinked in surprise as my voice came out in a scratchy whisper. I cleared my throat, trying again. "Mr. Firay?"

He stirred slightly, turning his head to the side. "Mm," he mumbled, keeping his eyes shut.

"My arm's asleep... Could you move?"

"In a minute, Daphne," he responded, nestling his head more comfortably into my arm. After another moment his eyes shot open, gazing straight into mine. He sat up quickly, part of his hair matted to his face. "Daphne?"

I chuckled at his expression and the hair pressed against his face. "Morning, sleeping beauty."

"Daphne," he repeated in a breathy voice, his expression turning to relief. He turned to the side, hitting something on the machine next to me before quickly moving forwards in his seat, throwing his arms around me, and bringing his body closer to mine. He rested his head against my shoulder, rubbing it against it slowly. "Thank g... Thank goodness."

Confused, I stared down at him. "What?"

He suddenly pulled back away from me, bringing his face in front of mine. "Daphne," he breathed again, resting his forehead against mine.

"Mr. Firay?"

Without warning he pressed his lips against mine very gently, as if they were made of fragile glass. He his head, placing kisses across my jaw line, all the way up to my ear. I let out a shaky breath, my body tingling at the sensations. He kissed back down my jaw again, landing at my lips, this time a little more roughly. After a moment he pulled away, planting one last kiss on my forehead before dropping his head back on my shoulder.

He his arms tightened around me, making my arms squish together painfully. I tried to break free from his grasp, but in my feeble state I could barely move my head. It took a moment for me to realize Mr. Firay's shoulders were shaking... and he wasn't laughing.

"Mr... Matt…Mustardseed, what's wrong?" I asked slowly, my chest tightening as a sense of dread washed over me. "What? Is it Wendell? Or Sage? What happened?" I cried, feeling panicky. "Are they hurt? Is Bryant still free? Mr. Firay!"

Mr. Firay finally pulled away from me, keeping his head down. "No, they're fine," he told me in a husky voice.

My shoulders sagged in relief. "Then what's the matter?"

"I love you, Daphne," Mr. Firay murmured into my shoulder. "So much."

"I love you too," I responded, growing more and more confused.

Mr. Firay's body suddenly became tense. "I thought I lost you."

"Lost me?"

He raised his head, his eyes piercing into mine. My heart skipped a beat when I realized they were red- either from lack of sleep or crying. He let out a deep sigh, bringing one of his hands up to my face and gently stroking my cheek. There was a slight tremor to his hand.

"I've never been so terrified in my life," Mr. Firay started, setting his jaw. "I thought you were going to die, Daphne."

"Die?" I parroted, my mouth going dry.

Mr. Firay's face tightened, a look of pain crossing it. "I told you not to go to sleep. You didn't listen. The knife missed your vital organs, but you lost so much blood, and the poison was deep in your stomach, so they gave you a transfusion, and a few of the Everafter doctors tried taking the poison out with magic, but you were still in critical condition, and you slipped into a coma-"

"Coma?" I repeated incredulously, panic creeping up on me once again. "A coma?"

Mr. Firay nodded, shaking his head. "The doctors gave no explanation. I thought you wouldn't wake up though. I thought that I had somehow managed to get you killed, even though I tried my best to protect you. I thought-"

"Mr. Firay," I started, cutting him off. "Mr. Firay…_Mustardseed,_ I'm okay."

He snapped his mouth shut, looking at me with smoldering eyes. Using all the strength I had, I raised my hand up to his cheek, resting it against him. "I'm okay," I repeated, feeling my eyes water. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, stupid," Mr. Firay responded, shutting his eyes and grabbing my hand, pressing it more securely to his cheek. "You have nothing to apologize for."

"But I worried you-"

Mr. Firay shook his head slightly. "I love worrying about you, Daphne. I just wish I didn't have to so much."

"You won't have to anymore right?"

Mr. Firay stayed silent. Panic started welling up within me. "How long have I been out for? Is Wendell okay? What about Sage? Where's Bryant?"

Mr. Firay put his hand over my mouth, effectively silencing me. "Daphne, you need to calm down. Wendell is fine. Sage is fine. Bryant's in jail."

"Bryant's in jail?" I repeated when Mr. Firay pulled his hand away.

Mr. Firay nodded. "The police got him."

It took a moment for the news to sink in. Bryant was finally captured. "And what about you?" I asked, growing nervous again.

He smiled slightly. "Since I was a good boy and quote, unquote, saved you, I'm off the hook."

"You're not in any trouble?"

"None at all."

My eyes welled up as a swirl of emotions passed through me, the most prominent one being relief. "I'm so glad," I finally said, doing my best to blink away my tears.

The door to my hospital room suddenly burst open, and a few doctors and my mom came in along with Sabrina, Puck, Basil, and Dad. Mr. Firay quickly moved out of the way so my mom could have better access to me. She threw her arms around me, squeezing me painfully. I gasped, my stomach clenching painfully.

"Mom," I gasped, trying to push her away. "You're hurting me!"

"Daphne! I'm so happy you're awake!" my mom blubbered, her voice thick with tears. "Oh, honey!"

I winced in pain as she continued to squeeze my aching body. "Mom-"

"I was so worried!"

"Please-"

"I thought you might not wake up!"

Dad put a hand on Mom's shoulder. "Honey, you're hurting her." But I could see him struggling not to attack me with a hug, too.

She gave me an apologetic smile. "Sorry."

Before I could reply, Sabrina threw herself on me. "Daphne Grimm, you scared us all." She then realized she was crushing me, so she held back a little.

I tried to hug her back. "I'm sorry, Sabrina."

"You're going to tell me everything as soon as you get better or so help me, Daphne Grimm, I will force it out of you-"

Puck squeezed Sabrina's cheeks, making her have fish lips. He shook her head in his hand. "Aw, you're so cute, trying to sound all intimidating to your hurt, little sister."

She tried removing his hand, scowling at him. "Lay off, Puck."

Puck smiled at me, ignoring my sister, and rubbed my shoulder. "I knew you were going to make it. You're a tough Marshmallow to crack."

I smiled. "Thanks."

Basil huffed. "You got the whole family worried. Uncle Jake actually threw a fit when we told him to wait outside because it'd be crowded in here…" He glanced at Mr. Firay. "I say we're _way _too crowded now."

"I have to call Wendell and Ariana. I promised them I'd call when you woke up..." Mom said, wiping her eyes off with her sleeve. "They'll be so relieved."

"Excuse me," one of the doctors clad in a white coat said, gently pushing Sabrina and Puck out of the way. "We need to do a check-up on her and make sure everything is okay."

Dad nodded, beckoning everyone to follow him out. Basil sighed in relief, and almost ran out of the room –he seems so concerned about me. My mom glanced at me with another worried smile, and Sabrina gave me another hug before she went out of the room. Puck moved out of the doctors way and I watched as he went over to Mr. Firay, saying something to him I couldn't hear. He stood up, nodding to Puck. Together they started for the door.

"Wait!" I cried out, my eyes widening. "Where are you going? Stay here!"

Puck sent me a large grin. "I have to go outside and get your uncle up-to-date. Basil and Henry are probably going to get snacks, and my godzilla of a wife will most likely look for peanut butter and cucumber sandwiches. Your mom is calling up your friends –you want to see them, right?"

"Yeah," I responded, my face falling slightly. "Mr. Firay-"

"I'm not supposed to be in here during a check up," he informed me with a tight smile. "I'm going to get something to eat from the café across the street. Do you want something?"

As if on cue, my stomach growled. A blush spread across my face as Mr. Firay chuckled. I hadn't realized how hungry I actually was. It actually kind of hurt.

"Cake?"

"Chocolate," I told him, adverting my gaze. "Thank you."

"Anything for you, Daphne."

Puck sent me a curious look before he disappeared through the door. Mr. Firay gave me one last lingering look before parting as well. I turned my attention to the doctor, who was in the process of taking out my I.V. I quickly shut my eyes, turning in the opposite direction, and trying to focus on anything but the feeling of the needle slipping out of my vein.

Half an hour later, the door burst open, scaring me half to death. Mr. Firay quickly slapped me on the back as I choked on a piece of cake. Ariana and Wendell came through the door, both with excited looks on their faces.

"Merry Christmas!" Ariana cried, flinging herself at me. She landed hard, causing me to groan in pain. Immediately she pulled back, looking sheepish. "Sorry!"

I shook my head, resting a hand on my sore stomach. "It's fine. And what are you talking about? Christmas isn't for another week..."

Ariana's head snapped to Mr. Firay. "You didn't tell her?"

"Tell me what?"

"You've been out for two months," Wendell told me in a serious voice. "I thought you were a goner-" He was abruptly cut off when Ariana elbowed him in the side.

She rolled her eyes as Wendell groaned in pain. "Ignore Wendell."

I turned to Mr. Firay. "We missed Christmas at my house!"

He smirked. "Actually, your mom postponed the dinner so we could celebrate it out of the hospital."

I sighed, relaxing. "That's good. I was really excited for this dinner. Anyways, how have I been in the hospital?"

"You've only been out for a little over a week," Ariana said.

"A week?" I repeated incredulously. "I've been gone for a week? Oh no..." A groan left my lips and I fell back onto my pillow.

"What's wrong?" Mr. Firay demanded, coming closer to my bed. "Are you okay?"

I shook my head. "No..."

"Should I call a doctor?"

"No, that's not it," I told him, smiling slightly at his concern. "I'm just terrified about the amount of math homework I've missed... As well as every other class."

"Well, at least you won't have to worry about home ec homework," Wendell told me in an amused voice.

I cocked my head to the side. "Why?"

Mr. Firay cleared his throat, turning away from me. "No reason."

"Firay's been skipping school so he could stay here with you," Wendell informed me, a smug smile slipping onto his face.

I turned to Mr. Firay, my eyes widening at the news. "Really?"

"I've only skipped two days," Mr. Firay informed me, shooting Wendell an annoyed look. "The other days I was given off since, you know, I was shot."

My mouth dropped open in shock. I had totally forgotten Mr. Firay had been shot! "Are you okay now?"

"I was okay when I got shot, Daphne," Mr. Firay responded with a shrug. "Although Bryant and James needed some serious medical attention..." He turned to Wendell with a smirk.

Wendell immediately dropped his gaze, scratching the back of his head. "I didn't mean to shoot him. I just panicked."

"You _shot _someone, Wendell?"

"James," he told me. "It was either shoot him or watch him attempt to kill you."

"But Wendell-"

"You shot someone too! Well, sort of!"

I frowned at him. If I scolded him, I'd be a hypocrite. Well, sort of. "Where's Sage?" I asked, deciding to change the subject.

"Dunno," Mr. Firay responded with a shrug. "I haven't seen him since Sunday... That was two days ago."

"I saw him today at school," Ariana interjected. "He said he was going to come by later."

"You saw him at school?"

Ariana nodded. "That's what I said."

"Why was he there?" I questioned, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion.

"Looking for Mr. Firay, I think," Ariana responded. "After I told him he wasn't there, he left."

Mr. Firay frowned. "I wonder what he wanted..."

"Obviously you," Ariana said slowly, giving Mr. Firay a funny look. "You don't listen well, do you?"

Mr. Firay scowled at her. "Well he wanted to talk to me for a reason, didn't he?"

"I don't know."

"So have you heard the good news?" Wendell asked, leaning towards me, ignoring the other two. "Bryant's in jail and he's going to be in there for a long time."

"I've heard," I responded, smiling widely back at him. "It's the best news I've heard all day."

Mr. Firay snorted. "You've only been up for an hour or so. There's not much you have heard."

I puffed my cheeks out at him. "Shut up."

He rolled his eyes. "Sure thing, princess."

"Princess? Aw, that's a cute nickname," Ariana interjected with a cheeky grin. "Is he prince, Daphne? Or king? I feel like Mr. Firay would prefer king."

"We don't have nicknames for each other," I told her, feeling my face heat up.

"You don't?"

"No!"

Wendell snorted. "What kind of couple are you guys? Lame."

I turned to Mr. Firay, who was shooting daggers at Wendell. "You're just jealous because Daphne fell for me and not you."

Wendell's head snapped towards Mr. Firay. "What?"

"You deaf?"

"No! I don't like Daphne!"

Mr. Firay smirked at him. "But you used to."

"No I didn't-"

"But I guess we both know Daphne prefers someone more mature," Mr. Firay continued with a small sigh. "Sorry, chap."

Wendell scowled at Mr. Firay, setting his jaw. "You're annoying, you know that?"

"I take it as a compliment."

Ariana laughed, nudging Wendell in his rib cage. "You can't insult someone like Mr. Firay, Wendell."

Wendell crossed his arms, turning away from her. "I'll figure out a way."

"Daphne, you're grinning like the Cheshire cat," Mr. Firay pointed out, an amused smile slipping onto his face.

Blinking in surprise, I realized I was indeed grinning broadly. I stopped immediately, feeling my muscles protest. Mr. Firay chuckled, reaching forward to ruffle my hair. I pulled his hand away, but didn't let go.

"I'm just happy that all this is over," I told him. "No more Bryant. No more gangs. No more problems..."

"No more hospitals," Mr. Firay added in a firm tone. "And no more shooting people. Okay, Daphne, Wendell?"

Wendell and I exchanged sheepish looks. "Right."

Ariana pouted. "Aw, I never got to shoot anyone..."

Mr. Firay, Wendell, and I all stared at her incredulously. A small blush spread across her cheeks and she held up her hands defensively. "Kidding, I was kidding..."

"Daphne, Matt, I hope you guys are decent!" a loud voice suddenly came from behind the door. "I don't want to walk in on you two again."

"Again?" Wendell echoed, his eyes widening.

I blushed, glaring as Sage entered the room, a satisfied smirk on his face. "There was no first time."

Sage faked a hurt look. "Are you calling me a liar? After I came all this way to visit you? Look, I brought chocolate!" He held out a small box of chocolate to me. "Does Daphne want some chocolate? Oh, I bet she does," he said, mimicking the way someone would talk to their pet.

"I don't want them," I snapped.

"I do!" Ariana interjected, snatching them from Sage's hand. "Thanks... Um..."

Sage frowned at her. "Sage. We've met before..."

"Oh! At Victoria's Secret!"

Mr. Firay snorted, quickly raising a hand to his face. He cleared his throat as Sage glared at him. "Well, no surprise there, Jer," he said with a shrug.

"Victoria's Secret, eh?" I repeated with a smirk. "I would have never guessed, Sage."

Sage flushed. "I wasn't there! I don't know what Ariana is talking about! I've never met her in there!"

"What do you mean?" Ariana responded, feigning a confused tone. "You were having trouble choosing between lace and silk..."

"I was not!"

I laughed at Sage's frantic denial. Mr. Firay started laughing too, turning his head away. Even Wendell was smirking in amusement. Sage stared at Ariana like she was crazy.

"You saw me get shot!" he cried desperately. "I drove you home!"

"I know," Ariana responded with a grin. "I was just kidding."

Sage froze, his expression going blank. I burst out laughing again, groaning in pain as my abs contracted. Mr. Firay sent me a worried look, but I shook my head at him.

"Seems like you've met your maker, Sage," I commented, raising my eyebrows.

Sage pursed his lips, appraising Ariana with his eyes. "We'll see."

Ariana puffed out her chest, looking back at Sage with determination. "By the way, Sage. You didn't ever deny going into Victoria's Secret... You just said you've never met me in there."

Once again Sage flushed as he stared at Ariana in disbelief. "I-"

Mr. Firay chuckled, placing a hand on my shoulder. "I like your friends, Daphne."

I smiled up at him. "Good, because I'm hoping you'll be around for a while."

"I'm hoping I'll be around forever," he responded, leaning down to kiss me.

When he pulled away, I realized Sage, Wendell, and Ariana were all staring at us. Sage looked amused, and Ariana and Wendell looked shocked. A blush crept its way onto my face.

"What?" I demanded. "You've never seen two people kiss before?"

Ariana opened her mouth, her eyes widening excitedly. After a moment she shut it, obviously changing her mind. "It's so cute when you guys kiss though!" she finally cried.

Wendell snorted. "No it's not."

"Jealousy," Sage, Ariana, and Mr. Firay all taunted.

"I'm not!"

I laughed, wincing as once again my stomach burned with pain. "Ow."

Mr. Firay chuckled, patting my head. "Okay. We should probably let you rest a little more before we reopen your wound."

"But I just got here," Sage protested.

"You can come back later."

"But-"

"In the meantime, we could go lingerie shopping if you want," Ariana suggested, putting a hand on Sage's shoulder.

Sage scowled at her. "Drop it, kid."

"Kid?" Ariana responded, raising an eyebrow. "According to Daphne, you're only two years older than me."

"Two years is still older."

"Not much."

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes, pushing on Sage's shoulder. "You guys can argue out there. Daphne needs rest."

"See you later, Daphne!" Ariana called, trying to duck under Sage, who was pushing her out the door as Mr. Firay pushed him.

"Bye!"

Wendell waved before following the trio out the door. Mr. Firay appeared again moments later, grabbing the door handle. He paused for a moment, staring at me.

I subconsciously raised a hand to my face. "What?"

Mr. Firay shook his head. "Nothing. Rest well, Daphne."

"I love you, Mustardseed."

He looked at me in surprise for a moment, and then smiled. "I love you too, Ms. Grimm."

**A/N. **Question: In the sequel, do you want Daphne to call Mr. Firay, Matt or Mustardseed? I tested 'Mustardseed' a bit in this, if you've guessed. Oh, and sorry how the Grimms just disappeared in the last part –It's 10:28 and I know you guys needed something to be posted tonight. But don't worry –we'll see them again next chapter.

All right. I was looking at this article "20 Weird Cravings" on Yahoo! Shine and one of the foods listed was, "Eggs with Spam and White Rice". _Is it really that weird? _We have that occasionally at home –we slice and dice the eggs and Spam and mix it with white rice. It's delicious…

Replies to Anons (I solemnly promise that I will at least get through ten of the signed-in reviewers from tonight to tomorrow):

Chapter 55 (): Thanks! ^^ No, you're not paranoid. :D You were right. And yes –if Sage was real, he'd look like JH. And a British one. Heehee. I KNOW, RIGHT? If you sound out the initials of Puck Archibald Cainly (pfffff), it's PAC…I felt like pointing that out. WTPUCK is the future! ^^ Thank you!

_Wishes from the Trickster King _Chapter 1 PenguinLoverGurl: Aw, I'm sorry I made you cry. If there was a Scrooge, that'd be amazing. And that's so true. I never met my mom's dad (my grandpa) so I wonder what he's like because he died when my mom was around my age. MtLBYaYLO, too!

Chapter 57 TheAfterShockNLI: I am happy, thanks. :D I'm actually kind of happy you caught that –you're not one to be moved so easily. You like being mentioned in A/Ns? I'll try to mention you a lot more. Oh, that's all right. I just wanted a sign to let me know that you were reading, that's all. Oops, I'll fix that "minutes/mittens" error, thanks. :D Well, Puck and Mseed will talk a lot during the Christmas dinner scene thing. :D You are very humble, my friend! The humblest of the most humblest people in this so very humble world. :D

Chapter 61 yellow.r0se: I accept your apology, but it wasn't necessary –I understand life's busy (heck, I haven't replied to many reviews and PMs in a _week_) so I'm not going to be a hypocrite and complain. Thanks so much! I'm sorry, but happy at the same time, that you were shocked (surprising people can be fun). Don't worry –they're not going to die. :') Thanks again! …you stayed up until 2? I only stay up that long on New Years. OH, wow. Lol, very rational. Well, that morning has passed –what happened to the bug? Did you ever see it again? Thanks for the review!

Chapter 61 killer bunnies: Heehee, blushing Daphne is adorable. Shock and horror…a scary combination, isn't it. :3 I know –that scene was like an emotional soap opera scene., wasn't it? T_T They will not die –if you read this chapter, they're alive and well. And yeah –you can't expect a sequel without the main characters. I love doing that! Knowing I got you to feel suspense totally made my day! Aw, thank you. Actually, I'm feeling much better –the braces aren't as annoying as they were last week, and we're all feeling better (I was able to go back to school Tuesday). Thank you!

Well, I really, really, really wanted to reply to more, but it's almost 11 PM (as I'm typing) this, so I need to sleep. They should have a "journal" section on FF so I can just write all of this there. :3 **Thank you all for the prayers and the Get Wells! **My family and I are so much better (we're not contagious anymore ;D) and my braces have become a small annoyance (hardly an annoyance anymore. Only thing is that I have to brush and floss like ten times a day).

I have a surprise for you guys –**A chapter tomorrow! YAAAYYYY! **Man will I be busy. And lucky you all! I'm going to _not _finish this story by Monday. (I don't have a lot of time. I still have like two or three things planned, and I have to dedicate this story to ALL my reviewers) Most likely, I will end this the first of May, signaling the end of SG also (well, that actually ends Monday, because I _do _get the book by then, but…). But since that's the last SG book, we're sure to see many new fanfics. And so, May 4th, I'll post the first chapter of the sequel. All right with you guys?

Now…sigh…I'm sweating right now….typing when you're really tired is hard…hhhh…see you tomorrow!

~Lara

PS. Happy Earth Day!


	63. Chapter 63:

**A/N. **I think I should share a story with you all.

**When Wendell and Ariana met, Wendell had come to the city with his family on vacation (the barrier is gone, okay? And they met a few years ago). They got along really well, and even started dating after. But -like Josh and Ariana's relationship, they thought it better to become friends. The end.**

:3 I probably crushed all of your Wendell/Ariana dreams right then and there. Sorry. Originally, I was going to have that story as part of one of the earlier chapters of FTFT, but then I realized, "Wait, if Ariana has been Daphne's best friend for a few years, I can't have her and Wendell date now because Wendell's already met her." That probably doesn't make sense, but put simply: Wendell and Ariana tried dating. Sage is better paired with Ariana. And Wendell will find someone in the sequel. Promise. Here's a hint:

_Everytime it's been sung, it has given this girl bruises and many injuries._

You're probably like, "What are you talking about?" It'll make sense in the sequel.

Ummm, the votes: **Tie. **ARRRGGGHHH. So, in school=Mr. Firay. When she's alone with MSeed=Mustardseed. Outside school=Matt. How about that? :D

Nowww...I HAD SO MUCH FUN WRITING THIS! AAH! It was like a burst of energy. Seriously -I had fun. I just wish it was so much longer than it is. D: So, this is going to be split in two parts. Any suggestions or requests for next chapter? **Please request. **I am going blank. :3

...Like, one more chapter. WAHH. Well, two. Maybe.

**Chapter 63: Christmas**

The girl shifted uncomfortably in her seat, trying to avoid our gazes. She could try, but she wasn't going anywhere. She had already tried the bathroom excuse, the kitchen excuse, and the water excuse. She didn't have any other place to go to. From the corner of my eye, I could see Basil's expression. He gave me a pleading look. _Kill me. Please. Now._

We stared at the girl from our seats on the couch. She sat next to Basil on the loveseat -how appropriate- with an awkward expression.

"So, Jay..." Puck said, putting a sweet smile on his face. "How long have you known Basil?"

"Um, ever since he's visited New Jersey," the girl said in a soft voice, her cheeks rosy. She tried dipping her head so her auburn hair covered her face. I grinned at her, even though she couldn't see me. She was so cute! When Dad brought Jay and Basil to the house together, you couldn't help but 'aww' at her. She had big, doe eyes that were an adorable shade of hazel and she had a bit of baby fat on her cheeks, but that emphasized her cuteness!

"Where did you meet Basil?" Sabrina asked her, with her arms crossed. "Nowhere restricted, or without adult supervision, am I correct?" My sister wasted so time in evaluating Basil's friend. She's been giving Jay the evil eye ever since she's gotten here. Though I knew she wouldn't do anything rash, Sabrina's expression and choice of words would make _me _squirm in my seat, too.

"A-at a coffee shop. We were both waiting for our lattes and started talking when we found out w-we ordered the same thing," she stammered.

Puck grinned. "Oh? So you guys have a lot in common, don't you?"

She ducked her head again. "Well, we both like video games and sports. I know I don't look like a sporty type of person but I like baseball a lot -a-and wrestling, too. Most people think that makes me weird -the wrestling- but I think it's really cool if a girl could be able to do that. I actually take lessons on wrestling in New Jersey..." Jay turned red again when she realized she was babbling. "Oh, sorry, I tend to do that a lot-"

Puck laughed. "Quiet, modest, but powerful and not a force to be reckoned with! Does she pass your test, Sabrina?"

The color drained off Jay's face. "I was being tested? Oh no, I didn't know I was being tested! I should've picked my words more perfectly. Oh no, if I got a bad grade, my mom would kill me-"

I wanted to hug her right there. She was acting so sweet! "You are so cute! I think you pass with flying colors! I'd love for you to be Basil's girlfriend."

Her face was completely white. "Girlf-friend? Wh-what? I'm _ten_!" She sputtered. Jay couldn't deny the blush on her face, though. Finally. Someone else other than me who blushed constantly.

Sabrina nodded her approval. "I give you permission to date my little brother. You dress well, and you're definitely not some girly girl."

Jay looked like she was going to black out. "Date...Basil...Approve...Girly..."

Basil rushed to her with a glass of water, then turned to us with an angry expression. "Are you trying to kill her? This cupid talk isn't her style! And she's my _friend_. We're frickin' ten years old! What's wrong with you all?"

Jay clutched his arm. "No, I'm all right. I'm just...surprised." She tried calming down after a while, and Puck chuckled.

"Surprised? You acted like you just heard someone tell you you were pregnant, with the way your soul practically floated away from you," he commented with a gigantic grin.

Sabrina punched her husband. "Don't joke about that," she mumbled, probably thinking about the time Oberon had taken over her soul years ago. Though, I might be wrong.

"About what?" I asked, glancing at her curiously, but she didn't meet my eyes.

Puck's grin -if possible- grew wider. "Aw, are you feeling embarrassed even before we tell them?"

"Tell us what?" Basil demanded. It seemed he was still mad at our Jay questioning. The poor girl still looked drained of color.

Sabrina got up from her seat, shooting an angry look at Puck. "Nothing! I'm going into the kitchen for something to eat. I'm hungry."

"But it isn't dinner time yet!" he protested. Though, he was grinning like a maniac. I don't think there was ever a moment where he wasn't smiling.

"What's going on?" I asked, though I had a feeling I knew. I could feel my stomach bubbling up in excitement.

Puck winked at me. "Well, I made a deal with my wonderful wife that we'd tell at dinner, and since it's not time yet, I'm not telling you _anything_." I opened my mouth in protest, but Puck cut me off, clapping his hands. "So! Who's up for a snowball fight?"

"Last time it was a cake fight," Basil mumbled. "No thanks."

Jay, now over her initial shock of the situation beforehand, stifled a giggle. "I'd actually love to. My parents don't let me out of the house when it really starts to snow during this time of the year, so I'd really like to try. It'll be my first time."

"You've never been in a snowball fight?" Puck and I said together.

I grinned at her. "You've been missing out, young one."

The ten-year-old looked excited. "Let's go!"

We grabbed our hats, boots, and mittens before going outside. I collided with Mr. Firay just as we opened the door, and Puck knocked into me, which made Basil and Jay knock into each other. It was like Dominos -except no one besides me fell all the way to the ground. Mr. Firay caught my wrist before I hit the ground all the way.

He tsked as a blush formed on my face. "You got out of the hospital not a week ago and you're already trying to kill yourself. What are we going to do with you?"

"Sorry," I mumbled, trying to keep eye contact with him.

Puck grinned. "She's a Grimm. Like Sabrina, they're always in life-or-death situations even without all the monsters. How are you doing, Bro?" While I was still in the hospital, Mr. Firay and Puck had done some talking, and their relationship was patched up. They always made time for each other each week -I hope I'm like that with Sabrina and Basil when I'm older.

Mr. Firay gave his brother a one-shouldered hug, his hand still attached to mine. "I'm fine. Being shot didn't hurt so much."

"_Suure_," Puck pulled back and gave both of us a serious look. "You both are going to tell me exactly what happened one day, right?"

"Promise," I said, giving him a short smile. I let go of Mr. Firay's -I wonder if Puck noticed- hand to give Puck a hug around his middle. For some reason, when he aged, he got taller, so I only was as tall as his chest.

"_Daphneeee_!" A voice shouted. "My little cherub!"

I was prepared for the attack. I pushed myself off of Puck just as Sage slammed into Puck, giving him a hug instead of me. When Sage realized he was hugging another man, he pulled back, giving Puck a puzzled look.

"You are most certainly _not _Daphne."

Puck glanced down at his pants. "Last time I checked, I was a man. _And straight,_" he added, remembering the earlier scene.

Sage winked. "I can change that."

"And married."

He snapped his fingers with a grin. "Damn!" Sage turned to me with a hopeful face. "Daphne?"

"Sorry, Sage, I'm not interested in bisexual British men," I said with a laugh.

He clutched at his heart dramatically. "Woe is me!"

Mr. Firay hit him in the head and rolled his eyes. "Sorry, Puck. This is my friend, Dumbass. Dumbass say hello to my brother, Puck."

"Why hello, Mr. Dumbass. Is that a common British name?" Puck said with a smirk.

"Why yes. Right next to Jackdonkey and F-"

"There are ten-year-olds here," I warned. Though my warning was a little late. The word "Dumb-_donkey_" was thrown around about five times already. Basil and Jay didn't look fazed, though. In fact, they looked really amused.

"-Fredrick. My momsey's first name was Fredrick. I have a sister named Alfred, too. And my popsey's name was Fredina."

"Stop confusing him," I sighed, but I still kept that grin on my face. "Puck, this is Sage. And his parents' names are Sam and Samantha. His sisters are Shaine and Sairi."

Sage look teary eyed. "You remember their names? I'm so touched-"

Mr. Firay hit him again. "Be stupid somewhere else. Where are you guys going, Basil?"

Basil shrugged. "It'd be easier to show you..." With that, he threw a snowball at Mr. Firay's face. I laughed at his shocked expression, and turned to compliment Basil, but he and Jay had already run off in the other direction. Basil called back, "We're ready when you guys are!"

Sage rubbed his hands together. "I love snowball fights! I will pummel you all!" He let a maniacal laugh, then ran around the house.

Puck, Mr. Firay, and I all stared at each other. "Well I don't know about you two," he said, starting to make a ball of snow in his hands, "but I'm ready to play."

**A/N. **AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH! IT'S 9:00! I have to sleep. :3

School is a real bother, don'tcha know? :D Well, I'm really sorry nothing fairly interesting happened in this (aside, you know, the wacky appearance of Sage and all). Like I said, I'd just LOVE suggestions! ^^

Review replies:

Chapter 62, killer bunnies: I know, right? :D I was so shocked when I found that out. It's not bad –I've reread them like 4. ;DDD Hahaha, we must be talking through Scrooge. ;D Have you taken over Sabrina's body to talk in this review? I don't get it –why do most Americans not like hugs? I mean, Asians (well, Filipinos) LOVE GIVING AND RECEIVING HUGS! But my friend, Andrea, just runs away like Daphne did from Apollo. :3 Mustardseed _is _an awesome name. Thanks! And it really does come out April 24. It's out on Amazing and Barnes and Nobles. Actually, the reason I know it comes out on Tuesday is because I got an email from Amazing saying so.

Chapter 62, awesomesauce: Hello! ^^ Hahah, you're not weird –that's actually why I chose that name. I usually write at night, so I wanted a random name and I picked Diana to be the disguised name for Daphne Pierce. :D OMG –you read so much faster than me. :D. I once read a 66 chaptered story –took me two days. Well, I guess that's good considering there was school. Aw, thank you so much! I'm sad to see this story end, too. But hopefully the sequel will be good –not as nice as this (because the sequels are usually 99% not as good as the original), but good. They're relationship is patched up nicely in this chapter, right? :D Yes, brotherly love.

Chapter 62, PenguinLoverGurl: True that. :D You think so too? Well, I'm considering getting them together. :D No, Wendell will find another. :D True, true. :D I still can't publish this because then I'd have to take it off of FF. And…that'd suck, lol. :D Thanks so much, though! Your comments really mean a lot to me –my stomach is full of butterflies! :D Oh, really? Man, you should've come to Fort Myers Beach today –I was practically there the whole day, playing in the sand. I actually made a pretty good mermaid (I mean I made one, not that I covered myself in sand and everything. XD). They do grow up so fast –my brother's going to have his first communion next year. ;.D Laundry. Meh.

Chapter 62, Archer Princess: Aw, thank you so much! And …no, lol. I'm trying to think of one that will go like FTFT (Like ABAB, CDCD, EFEF, STST or GPGP –something like that). Well, not really a plot, but there will be a "DUN DUN DUN" storyline at the beginning. :D I'll probably start it the 8th of May. Thanks so much! Aww, I'm blushing. :3 I had so much fun writing that –actually, I always have fun writing FTFT. :D Hahaha, really? Sagey-poo, lol…. I'm coughing a lot, but that's about it. :D That's why I like UJ, lol. :DD True, true. I like Puck still. He is and always will be my favorite fairy guy. ;DDD …_It's so sad! _As soon as that book is delivered, I know I'm going to break down without even opening the book…aw, geeez, my eyes are misting. :333 You're not the only one –and I'm discussing it with _myself_. Thanks for the review!

Puckabrina-Percabeth-Fax-101: All righty! :D Aw, you think so? All right. IT'S SO HARD TO THINK OF A GOOD PAIRING NAME FOR THEM! D: But I'll keep those in mind. LE GASP! You're right! I might bring her Spanish back! Hahah, thanks for the review!

**Just reminders for Friends:**

SweetShireen: I'd love to have a poem.

Curlscat: I sent what I wrote so far to you.

TheAfterShock: You have been included in this A/N. again. XD

I want to reply to more. Seriously. Time sucks sometimes –it can go too fast or too slow. D: Siigggh. I'm probably going to have to write these replies in school to save time…blahhhh. Oh well. I think that works well…ish.

Anyways, I must bid adieu for tonight! Next update (maybe, not really sure yet): **Tuesday. **If not, Friday.

See you guys soon! I hope the Palmtop Tiger brings you good luck! ;D If anyone catches that reference, I give you an imaginary cookie.

~Lara

**PS.** OMG I'M GETTING BOOK 9 TOMORROW I'M GOING TO CRY BUT I'M SO EXCITED AND I JUST CAN'T HIDE IT AND I KNOW AS SOON AS I SEE THE PACKAGE ON MY DOORSTEP BECAUSE I PRE-ORDERED IT **I AM GOING TO BAWL.**


	64. Chapter 64:

**A/N.**I'm having mixed emotions.

One) I'm very annoyed with the person/people who gave me a lot more than THREE reviews per chapter (if you were trying to be the 1,000th reviewer, or the 999th, spamming me didn't help you).

Two) I'm steamed. I wrote in my order that I wanted Book 9 to be delivered within 3-4 business days, and it should've been delivered Thursday. DX Oh well, it wasn't like I was going to read it straight away -my friend's reading it first, then I'm going to start reading it in May because I say so. :D

Three) **OMPUCKINGOSH!** Thank you thank you thank you thank yoouu! You've all brought this story a long way. And this story is -offically- the **third SG story to hit 1,000 reviews. **_AHHH!_:D I swear -this story only had 14 reviews just in August/September. How the heck did we get to 1,000 within nine months? That isn't even a whole year! But...I'm happy. I really am. I knew I was going to make this a long story, but I didn't know if a lot of people would like it's plot: Daphne re-meets Mustardseed, but he's her teacher and finds out he's an ex-gangster. It's pretty wacky, isn't it? :) I gues that's good, though- Alice in Wonderland was pretty wacky (so wacky they banned it at one point in time) but it's so popular! ^^ But really -my legs feel like jello (maybe that's why I'm so hyper). I'm so thankful to have really great friends who like what I write. :) I'm so thankful to have really mucho gravy friends in general! XD

I think I need to confess, though -I've been been trying to avoid FF. It's not that I'm mad at anyone buuut... So many people have already gotten the newest book and I keep hearing things (I heard that there's an interesting epilogue...and something about the barrier...) ... so, don't give anything away, please? Or I'll just not read reviews until I get and read my copy. XD

All right! Because this is chapter 64 (you all know my obsession with the number 4 -yes Curlscat, just like Artemis Fowl...do you know if the last book has come out yet?), I'll be giving you a few **spoilers about the sequel:  
><strong>  
><strong>Yes,<strong> it will be as long as FTFT (well, a little less -it won't be less than 40, though...).  
><strong>No,<strong> I don't have a title yet (I'm trying to do that thing with the acronym: FTFT, ABAB, DCDC, THTH, etc.).  
><strong>Yes,<strong> we will see the Grimms, Wendell, Ariana, Mr. Firay, Daphne and most importantly...Sage (let's face it -we love them bisexual British men ;D Just kidding -he's not bisexual...I _think_)!  
><strong>Yes,<strong> there will be new characters (two important ones).  
><strong>No<strong>, the sequel will NOT be their marriage.  
><strong>Yes,<strong> the sequel will be a continuation of Daphne's senior year (from after Christmas to graduation).  
><strong>Yes,<strong>Daphne and Mr. Firay will have to keep their relationship a secret (so be prepared for more fluff and hopefully you don't gag).

All right, I think that's _enough_ spoilers. :)

By the way, I have no idea what type of house Daphne lives in with her mom, dad, and Basil. Sometimes I say it's an apartment, sometimes it's a regular house. So...it's both. xD It wouldn't make sense to have a snowball fight outside apartments where there's such little space, right? :3 And...I said there was a forest in this chapter. I started laughing when I realized, "New York _city _has _forests_?" XDD So, ignore that, I guess. I still think Daphne lives in FPL for some reason.

DISCLAIMER: I have never ever been in a snowball fight, nor made a snow fort (hi, I'm a Floridian!), so the snowball fight will have a lot of loose ends, I'm sure.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 64: Grin <strong>(You know you want to)

After Puck's announcement, we decided we would all have an hour or two to make our forts. Then, we all scattered, putting up our defenses which wasn't very far -it wasn't like Ferryport Landing where we had space big enough for three houses. I was really excited -with Sage _and _Puck, I was sure this game wasn't going to be boring. I had no idea where the others had gone, but I knew the best place to build my snow fort -at the edge of the forest, where the big trees were.

A lot of snow covered their tops, and if you shook the trees hard enough, the snow fell like hail. It had been snowing quite hard yesterday that I didn't have to do that. With all the snow drift already set on the ground, I could just use that pile and start early. I thought it best to do the most common way -a wall, but with three sides. The side that wouldn't have a wall would be facing the forest and any unused piles of snow. It sounded like a lot of work, but I had done it countless times before. The first part of the fort didn't take me very long -Sabrina and I had had snowball fights ever since we had lived with Granny Relda. I shaped the snow into blocks (I used a comb because I forgot my other tools in the house -it was actually very effective and left a nice pattern on the snow) and put them in rows on top of each other. Halfway through the next side, I realized that Mr. Firay could have teamed up with me! And we wouldn't have been bothered for an hour or so... I blushed and smacked myself. Sage was starting to rub off on me.

I heard Basil shouting that the game was starting just as I started the snowballs. Checking my watch, I guessed that it had almost been two hours to prepare. Oh well. I don't think I would need more for a while. I stayed silent and heard the crunching of feet in the snow. I almost snorted -Basil could be sneaky, but he couldn't be quiet. He was about a foot away when I jumped out and aimed a snowball at him. Or, I thought it was him.

"Whoa!"

I blinked at him, lowering my hand. "Oh. Hey, Mr. Fira -err, Matt."

"Enemies are we?" he asked with a smile. Mr. Firay slipped into the fort and took a seat next to me.

"Well we are at war."

"It's a snowball fight."

"Same thing," I said, returning his with a grin of my own. "Shouldn't you be at your fort?"

"You don't want me here?"

"I do," I said quickly, not meaning to.

He smirked. "You're-"

Cutting him off, I said, "Shouldn't you be guarding your fort?"

Mr. Firay shook his head. "I didn't make one."

"What? Why don't you want to play?"

"I never said that," he said, tapping my forehead. "You're assuming things again."

I blushed. "Sorry."

He ruffled my hair. "Nothing to apologize for."

I asked, "But really -what have you been doing this whole time? And why didn't you make a fort?"

"Wouldn't it be nicer to team up with each other? Though, I really should have done this earlier -then we'd have a lot more alone time," he said with a smirk.

My cheeks reddened -no surprise there. I mumbled, "Sage is rubbing off on you."

"That's actually a good retort." Mr. Firay looked thoughtful. "I bet you were thinking the same thing about yourself earlier."

How could he know? "No, what are you talking about? You're crazy!"

"I can read you like a book, Daphne. And you suck at lying."

I pouted at him. "Do you have some...some sort of uncanny ability that lets you read people's minds?"

He snorted. "I'm not some supernatural book character, Daphne. I'm just an Everafter."

"With wings. Who happens to have a brother that can shapeshift and belch fires."

"Touché." Mr. Firay grinned at me, then noticed something. "Hey, when did you get those earrings?"

I touched my earlobes. "These? Oh, Sabrina gave them to me as a late Christmas present. And she gave me a matching bracelet as a birthday present." I slid off one of my mittens to show him.

"They sure match," he said with an amused smile. It sounded like he was having an inside joke with himself. Mr. Firay touched my earrings and leaned close to admire them. "They look expensive."

"Y-yeah." Even though it was freezing outside, I could feel heat rise to my cheeks as I noticed our proximity.

Mr. Firay raised an eyebrow, smirking at my flustered face. "Something wrong?"

"No."

"All right."

As much as I wanted to pull him closer, I knew he'd tease me. So to keep me from enduring, I said, "Could you move back a little?"

"I quite like this position."

"Really, Matt, someone's bound to come by and see..."

"See what?"

I tried to duck my head. "N-nothing."

Just when I put my head down, he tilted it back up. "You're so stubborn," he said before pressing his lips to mine. We had been out in the snow for quite a while, but his lips were warm. Wrapping my arms around him, he shifted us so we were in a more comfortable position. With his hands on my back, one moved upwards and entangled itself in my hair, pulling me closer.

Our moment was interrupted when I saw a snowball soar over the trees and land next to me. I pulled back quickly and accidentally knocked one of the sides down. "Shoot," I muttered. We looked over the standing sides and saw Basil and Jay carrying many snowballs. I almost laughed when I saw their faces -they had put smudges on their cheeks like those fake Indians in that one movie and had almost mimicked my warrior face.

I grabbed one snowball from my pile and threw it up and down. "Let's do this."

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "You're so dramatic sometimes." He then winded up his snowball in slow motion like a baseball player and threw it straight at Basil. It hit him in the cheek.

I grinned at Mr. Firay's smug face. "And you say _I'm _dramatic." He ignored the comment and threw another ball of snow.

We exchanged snowballs with each other. Though, we didn't see Puck or Sage -I wondered where they were. I knew Puck wouldn't miss out on an opportunity to play, but I didn't dwell on it. I hit Jay in the chest a few times, and Basil had gotten my face quite a number of times. Mr. Firay probably had the most hits out of all of us. He threw snowballs like they were grenades about to explode at lightning speed -like a pro. But then when we ran out did we have a problem.

Mr. Firay was trying to form a snowball in his hands, but it kept crumbling. "How do you do this!"

I raised an eyebrow at him. "You can't form a snowball?"

"Hey, my brother was the one who did all the fun -I was the one involved in Everafter debates and politics, remember?"

I grinned. "Finally! I can do something you can't!"

"Shut up." I didn't take any offense and grinned wider. After our little spat, I showed him how to make one without breaking it while ducking the snowballs thrown at us. When Mr. Firay finally made a snowball, that was when Puck showed up.

I wasn't expecting a fastball to make a hole in my fort, gasping as it flew past me and smashed into a tree behind me. I looked out and saw Puck holding two Nerf guns filled with -I don't know how- snowballs. He probably put something on them because they looked very solid (that was probably why they weren't mashed up like I expected), yet, I knew they were snowballs.

Jay asked him, "Isn't that cheating?"

Puck smirked. "Your boyfriend never said we couldn't use weapons."

They both shouted, "We're not dating!" The two looked at each other and blushed.

Puck fired wildly, but with accuracy (somehow). He hit all of us at least once in the chest and face, letting out a cackle each time. We all fired back at him, but then we began to lose snowballs. I blocked my face with my arms to protect myself -the fort was reduced to piles of snow. It seemed like Puck was going to win until a gigantic snowmobile came.

I clung to Mr. Firay just as the avalanche practically wiped us all out. I stayed under for a really long time; it was freezing. I didn't feel any movement, and I had probably lost Mr. Firay touch -I couldn't tell, feeling numb all over. It felt like hours under the snow that I thought I was going to die until I felt someone pull me upwards by my jacket. Mr. Firay looked concerned as I shivered. "Are you all right?"

I shuddered, but forced a smile. "Cold, but I'm fine." In reality, I was numb. I probably looked really blue.

Mr. Firay didn't believe me, so he pulled off his jacket and wrapped it around me. I was going to protest when he gave me a look. "I know what you're going to say -I'm fine. But you, you're a little more fragile, so no objections."

I gave in and looked around. Basil was with Jay -they were safe, thank goodness. Puck was being held aloft in the air by his wings, looking at the driver of the vehicle through the window indignantly. He pointed his finger at the driver accusingly as the window rolled down. "You cheated!"

Sage grinned at him and gave him a salute. "You never said we couldn't use snowplows to win this game."

"You're not playing fair."

"You never said we had to play fair either."

Puck huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Where'd you get this thing anyway?"

Sage got out of the gigantic snowmobile with a smug smile. "Matt and I took this to get here, but I'm surprised he didn't get the idea to use this to his advantage in the game, too."

Mr. Firay scowled. "You almost killed all of us!"

"Well it would've been an accident," Sage said in his defense. As he looked around at the mess he had made, Sage let out a whoop and danced victoriously. "_Whoo-hoo! _That was freakin' awesome! We have to do that again!"

"You sound so concerned. Look at Daphne! She's like a blueberry!" He pointed at me. I looked at myself, but I just looked really pale. Maybe it was just my face that was blue.

Puck tsked. "We better take her inside -Jake might have something to help."

We all marched inside -Sage, happily, and the rest of us slower. Basil and Jay ran inside and towards the kitchen where it seemed everyone was. The table was all set, and Sabrina was already eating as were Mom, Dad, and Uncle Jake.

My sister gasped when she saw me. "What did they do to you?" She instinctively turned to Puck who put his hands up in defense.

"Whoa! I did nothing! It was all this kid," he pushed Sage in front of him who took Sabrina's hand and kissed it.

Sage smiled charmingly at her. "My name's Sage. It's great to finally meet Daphne's attractive sister!" Mr. Firay snorted while I had to stifle a laugh -Sage's magic was working.

Sabrina smiled at him. "It's nice to meet you, too."

"I'm terribly sorry for almost giving Daphne hypothermia, by the way. We had too much fun having our snowball fight."

Dad came over to me and did an inspection of me, sighing. "Jake, do you have anything that'll fix Daphne up? I don't want her getting sick."

Uncle Jake fished in his pockets, and pulled his hands out empty. "Nope -unless you want side effects. If I remember correctly, Hank, last time I gave someone a potion with a side effect -which was when Puck gave Sabrina a water toadie egg, you complained about magic. How about a cup of hot chocolate instead, pumpkin?"

I smiled. "That works." He winked and went to make my chocolate while we all took seats at the table.

I sat next to Sabrina on one side, and Mr. Firay on the other. Next to Sabrina was Puck, Basil, Jay, Uncle Jake's open seat, Dad, then Mom, and Sage sat next to Mr. Firay on the other side. When Uncle Jake came back, a delicious, chocolate-y smell wafted in the air. It slid down my throat and I sighed. "Thanks, Uncle Jake." It was good. Maybe not as good as Mr. Firay's, but it was tasty nonetheless. "So," I said, taking another sip of my coffee, "what's the news, Sabrina?"

"I'm having a baby," she said, grinning. Puck let out a loud, "_Ahem._" Sabrina spared him a glance and said, "Oh, yeah. I'm nine months in."

Puck sighed. "You're so cruel."

"That's why you married me, isn't it?"

Mom clapped gleefully. "Grandbabies, grandbabies! Oh, I hope you have twins! Or triplets! Or quadruplets -oh, but not eight children. I don't want you to turn into that octomom I've been hearing about."

Sabrina about choked on her food. "No way!" She coughed loudly, and Puck patted her back soothingly even though his face was red, too. "We're only in our -well, Puck is physically- twenties!"

"But you will have quadruplets later, right?"

Puck grinned at my mom. "If the mother of hormones says so."

Sabrina turned red, coughing again. "Puck!"

Jay sighed. "This is such a wonderful dinner."

"You mean it?" Basil asked, trying not to sound too happy.

"I mean it."

"So, Mustardseed, what lessons have you been teaching Daphne?" Henry asked. "I'm sure there are a lot of cuisines you guys cook in class."

Sage snorted and side commented loudly. "That's what she said."

No one understood what he meant until he explained it to us. We had to block our Basil and Jay's ears to protect their innocence. I won't say anything because I don't want to remember _anything _he said.

After that, the dinner was full of laughs and shouting. Sage made [_many_] perverted comments here and there after we proved to Sabrina that he wasn't so well mannered. Mom made embarrassing comments about all of us at dinner -from baby experiences to present. Basil looked like he wanted to crawl under the table and die when Mom mentioned to Jay that he wore a bunny costume for Halloween only two years back. It was a great late Christmas dinner with the family -we exchanged presents. Even Sage and Mr. Firay had presents for everyone. I didn't get one from Mr. Firay for some reason. He looked guilty, so I didn't press him for an answer on that.

Mr. Firay and I didn't mention anything about our relationship, but I don't think we had to -after Jay, Mr. Firay, and Sage had left, Sabrina mentioned to me that there was something going on between us. Puck already suspected something, so I don't think they had to think hard on it. Though, I assumed Mr. Firay would have a hard time with Puck. Even if they were brothers, Puck still seemed to want that _over-protective older brother _title when I overheard him talking to Mr. Firay one day. Something about forcing him to "eat a horse" and never ending pranks. Whatever it was, it didn't sound good.

In the end, it was a great Christmas. We would probably do it next year -heck, we would probably do it for every big holiday. I grin when I realize that during those times, there won't have to be a secret relationship. Around the people I love, I could be myself, and I'm sure Mustardseed agrees with that, too.

,_(^-^)_,,_(^-^)_,,_,_(^-^)_,,_(^-^)_,,_(^-^)_,,_(^-^)_,,_,_(^-^)_,,_(^-^)_,TOGETHERNESS,_(^-^)_,,_(^-^)_,,_,_(^-^)_,,_(^-^)_,,_(^-^)_,,_(^-^)_,,_,_(^-^)_,,_(^-^)_,

* * *

><p><strong>AN. **All right, I know that sounds a lot like "the end", but it's not, I promise. Well, it kind of is. It's the last chapter, but there is an epilogue. :D And I know this needs so much editing –gah, it's so messed up. There are a lot of loose ends I need to fix…I also wanted to add something in, but it's so late now…ehhh…I'll probably do it later.

It's 10 PM, but maybe I'll be able to reply to a review or two:

PenguinLoverGurl: I don't even have the book yet. D: I should get it by tomorrow…Actually, it came out the 24th of April. :3 All right –THEY LIVE. I think. Oh, LOL, maybe Sage is up for it. XD Hahah, I'm glad you loved the chapter! True, true, and I wasn't planning on publishing this too. LOL. MtLBaSOYaYLO! XDD

nothin'likeME: I'm not sure on the baby's gender…

awesomesauce (Ch. 15): Lol. XD OMG! FINALLY! Someone who gets me! TADAMU FOREVER!

(): If you're from Australia, I guess the release date there is different. But yeah, it came out the 24th of April. :3

awesomesauce (Ch. 63): LOL. :D Me too –I'm so sad…D: AAHHH! NO SPOILERS! Yeeesss…Ariana and Sage FTW!

unheard: Thank you, but please don't spam.

() (Ch. 63): XD Oh, thanks for finding that error! Hmm…I thought it was ten…ah, I probably mixed that up again. XD Yes –the city's messed up. Or that's just me. XD Thanks!

Candygirl101: Yes he did. XD Thanks so much!

emma: Thanks so much! :D Well, there's the sequel to look forward to. Thanks so much for your awesomesauce reviews!

Airene Archerway NLI (Ch. 62): XD Thanks for your review! :D I loved that line, too.

Kathie (Ch. 18): XDDD Thanks! Lolol –you can have him for now. XDD

killer bunnies (Ch. 58): Sorry this is long overdue, by the way. :3 XDD My mom and dad aren't teachers so…no, lol. XD LOL. :DD Hahah, Matt's awesome. I know the feeling –just the other day I almost made a mermaid, but then we had to leave. UGGGGH. Lol. :D Thanks!

EoT NLI (Ch. 58): Oh, I see. XD Yep, a wedding. Just writing about Sage makes my day. :D Scars for scares. I would hope so. :D …You went to Australia? YOU COULD'VE MET ELLI FOR MEEEEE. :D But really –that sounds awesome. :D

Puckabrina-Percabeth-Fax101: :3 Sorry for the scare, but I get bored, you know? :3 Sorry, sorry, sorry! :3333 Thanks for the review!

killer bunnies: (Ch. 58): XD I'm glad your day got brighter! GO MATT! BOO BRYANT! Hahah, XD Sorry –it was actually really tempting to put Sage in it, but I had to restrain myself. :D Pssh, it was long enough. XD

Carina Carstairs: Aw, thanks so much! :D AHHH! AN OHSHC LOVER! FINALLY! :D True that, my friend, true that. :D I love Honey-sempai so much…

You know what? I take that back –I just replied to all anon reviews in my inbox. YAAAHH!

:D Well, one more chapter, folks! Thanks so much for being with me on this journey! When the last chapter/epilogue comes out? I don't know. But before the end of May, promise. :D I'm really busy this week! NJHS ceremony, Talent Show, preparing for Recital, Graduation dance for Eighth graders…bleh. But I'll make time for FTFT. :D

Oh wow...I just realized: I'm ending this story when SG ends...**WAAAAHH!HH! ***sobs* Oh man, this is so depressing...SIGH. I must stay strong!

Next chapter: I will reply to all reviews that are still in my inbox (or via PM), and write all the reviewers to thank. :D That is my goal for next chapter...and to make you guys happy. :D

See you soon!

~Lara


	65. Epilogue and Important Notes

**A/N.** Hooo...heee...hooo...*inhale*...*exhale*... *shaking-the-nerves*

All right. Reason I didn't update for so long was that it was kind of my break from writing. And also, I had Talent Show (went fabulously), NJHS (people said I had the brightest dress...is that good or bad?), Finals (some of them), a model for science due, two projects for English due, and a Graduation dance just this Friday (it was all circus-y! AMAZING!). So. I'm sorry for the wait. But -some of you anon. reviewers made me sad. I'm glad you love my story, but I still have to keep my studies steady. I'm really trying for all A pluses this semester (quarter, whatever), so I'm trying to stay away from FF to make time for studies. I had hoped that some of you would've understood, but for those that didn't nag me, cookies for you! :D I'm not mad at those who did complain, of course, but it really gives me some stress when my friends aren't happy. :3

Now I say again, "Hooo...heee...hooo...*inhale*...*exhale*..."

Before I say anything else, please take a bear hug from me. *Momma Bear, Poppa Bear, and Baby Bear come out to hug you* Sorry for the smell -I tried cleaning them the best I could. It's the thought that counts, though, right? :)

(I'd like to remind some people that they still have their spoiler questions to ask me. :) So if you're curious about anything at all, feel free to ask. :D)

I really want to thank all of you for bringing this story a long way. Feels like yesterday that I nervously clicked the "Publish New Story" button to submit the first chapter of For the First Time. Feels like 20 hours ago that I was nominated for the Best SG Story of 2011. Feels like 15 hours ago that I won the Best SG Story of 2011. Feels like 14 hours ago that you all screamed at me for almost killing Sage. Feels like 10 hours ago that you all happily said that Daphne and Mustardseed were finally together. Feels like 6 hours ago that you all said and were true that this story would hit 1,000 reviews. And right this moment, I'm so happy to have such great friends. Friends. Not readers or fans. Friends. :)

(Oh, I was just reminded by my friend, that she would like me to dedicate this chapter to her because she asked for that instead of a spoiler question –I think: **I DID NOT FORGET YOU, LLAMACORNRIDER/Chatouiller Mon Cornichon! :D **Here's your dedication.

Without further ado, here is the epilogue, plus, a special surprise from our own. :)

* * *

><p><strong>Epilogue<strong>

* * *

><p>"Just a little more, Daphne. Come on."<p>

"I'm trying! It hurts!"

"Suck it in!"

"I am!"

"Well suck in more!"

Doing as Ariana commanded, I took in more oxygen, sucking in my gut in as much as I could. Ariana yanked on my zipper, trying to force it to the top. She let out a small, strained groan, pushing down on my shoulder. Finally I heard the sound of it zipping up.

"_Lo hicimos_! It worked!" Ariana cried excitedly. "It fits!"

I let go of my breath and made a face. It was going to be difficult to breathe in this dress. "I should have just got a new dress…"

"Well you didn't have time, so _mala suerte_. Besides, this shade of lavender is so your color. _Tu eres bonita_!"

Pursing my lips, I turned to give her a disapproving look. "I can barely breathe."

"Come on," Ariana ordered, tugging on my elbow. "We were supposed to meet Mr. Firay and Sage in the lobby fifteen minutes ago."

"Hold on," I demanded, pulling my arm out of Ariana's grasp. "Let me just check my makeup—"

"You look fine," Ariana responded, quickly snatching up my arm again. "Now _vamos_!"

Warily, I allowed Ariana to pull me out of our hotel room. Being the nice friend I was, I had allowed Ariana to do my makeup for the wedding. Ariana being Ariana had decided not to let me see it before we left— for all I knew I could have clown makeup all over my face. To make things worse, I didn't even know how I looked in this dress. It was obviously too small. Ariana let me borrow hers, but hers was from a few years ago, so it didn't fit so well.

"Come on, we're late," Ariana urged, yanking me down the hallway. "_Rapido, rapido!_"

I staggered unevenly through the hallway after her, trying to keep my balance on my high heels. "Slow down, Ariana!"

Ariana threw an impatient glance at me. "Do you really want to be late for the wedding?"

"We're not going to be late."

"What if Sage gets lost on the way?"

"He won't get…" I trailed off, furrowing my eyebrows. Knowing Sage, he probably would actually get lost. "Maybe we should hurry."

When we arrived in the lobby, Mr. Firay and Sage were nowhere to be seen. It was completely empty aside from the receptionist, who was sitting at her desk half-asleep. Ariana turned to me, the corners of her lips turning down.

"They wouldn't leave without us, right?"

I shook my head. "Sage might, but Mr. Firay wouldn't let him…"

Suddenly Sage appeared from behind one of the pillars by the exit. He was readjusting his tie, looking down at it with an annoyed look. Moments later Mr. Firay stepped out from the pillar too, also pulling at his tie.

My breath caught in my throat for a moment. Mr. Firay couldn't look bad in a suit even if he tried. His hair was damp, making it look darker and more messy than usual. Ariana gave me a gentle push from behind and I stumbled forwards a few steps before walking on my own.

"What were you two doing behind there?" Ariana inquired when we were close enough for them to hear us.

Immediately both their heads snapped our way. Mr. Firay inhaled sharply as his eyes landed on me. I blushed, quickly adverting my gaze.

"Wow, Daphne," I heard Sage start. "You look—"

"Absolutely perfect," Mr. Firay finished, cutting in. "That color suits you well."

I looked back up now, smiling slightly. "You don't look half-bad yourself."

He grinned. "I know."

"Well who is this strapping young lady?" Sage said, turning to Ariana with a wide grin.

Ariana raised an eyebrow. "You clean up good."

Sage shrugged. "I try."

"But what were you two doing behind that pillar?" she questioned again, slowly smirking. "Something you shouldn't be? All alone? You guys were fixing your ties…"

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "We're not gay, Ariana."

"Well it is _jueves_. And you're wearing purple."

Sage looked surprised. "What? It's Thursday? Shit! I was supposed to work—"

Mr. Firay slammed his elbow into Sage's side. "It's Sunday, stupid."

"Oh."

I laughed. "Okay, so are we ready to go?"

"As soon as you put on your coat," Mr. Firay responded, giving me a disapproving look. "It's the middle of winter, Daphne."

I grimaced. "But Ariana…"

He sighed, taking his jacket off his arm and handing it to me. "Since we're already late, just wear this."

"But—"

"Wear it, Daphne."

I slowly took it reluctantly. "What are you going to wear? You know, Ariana doesn't have a jacket either."

"I've got her covered," Sage responded, and I turned to see Ariana pulling on what I assumed to be his jacket. "Us manly men can handle the cold."

"But—"

"Come on, Daphne," Mr. Firay interjected, holding out his jacket for me to slip into. "Just wear it."

After another moment of hesitation I finally sighed, putting my arms into the sleeves of the jacket. Mr. Firay pulled it tightly around me and started buttoning it up for me. I blushed, swatting his hands away.

"I can do that myself."

"But I can do it quicker," he responded with a smirk. "But if you insist. Come on, you can button while we walk." With that, he grabbed my hand and began dragging me towards the exit with no regards to the fact that I couldn't button my coat if he had one of my hands.

The trip to Lake Champlain, where the wedding was being held, didn't take very long at all. Sage had thought ahead and booked us a hotel only about twenty minutes away— _and_ he had mapped out the drive beforehand so he knew where he was going. Mr. Firay seemed just as impressed as I was. Sage had a smug expression on the entire time, and when we drove into the parking lot of the lakeside cabin, he looked extremely pleased with himself.

Swarms of people were entering the cabin, the women all dressed in lavender gowns, the men dressed in black tuxes. Mr. Firay quickly grabbed my hand again so we wouldn't be separated. I looked over to my shoulder to grab Ariana's hand, but I realized she had disappeared in the crowd behind us. Sage had too.

"Mr. Firay, Sage and Ariana—"

"Daphne, I'm going to ask you to try your very best to call me Matt today, okay?" Mr. Firay interjected, giving me a serious look. "Please."

I blinked, a bit taken aback by his serious tone. "Um, sure, Matt… But Sage and Ariana are still gone."

He surveyed the area around us, frowning slightly. "They'll find us when we sit down. Come on."

We started moving again, going into the main room of the cabin where pews after pews were lined up. A narrow strip of purple carpet separated the pews into the bride's side and the groom's side. Most people were seated already, aside from the ones still filling in. Mr. Firay led me to one of the pews closest to the front, pulling me to our seats.

"I didn't expect Daphne to have so many friends," Mr. Firay muttered, dropping into one of the seats.

I quickly sat down next to him, adjusting my dress. "Well there's family too…"

Mr. Firay frowned, gazing towards the front of the room where the altar was set up. For a second I thought I saw regret and his eyes and a nervous feeling spread through me. When Mr. Firay finally looked away he turned to me, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"What's wrong?"

"Are you sure you want to be here?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Color rose to my cheeks as I realized how stupid my thoughts were. "I… Um, never mind actually…"

Mr. Firay chuckled. "Were you thinking I would be uncomfortable watching the girl I used to love marry someone else?"

"Not exactly…"

"You can't lie to me, Daphne."

I sighed. "I know. Sorry."

Mr. Firay offered me a small smile. "Don't apologize. I'm over her, Daphne. I'm happy that she's found someone to love who won't cause her any problems. And besides, I have someone I love much more now."

"Sage?"

Mr. Firay lightly slapped me on the forehead. "You, stupid."

I pulled his hand off my forehead, but didn't let it go. He entwined his fingers with mine, setting our hands down on his lap. I gave his hand a hard squeeze.

"One day our friends will be the ones sitting here," Mr. Firay stated, sending me a grin. "And you'll literally be a blushing bride."

To no one's surprise, a warm blush spread across my face at his words. "I—I won't blush."

Mr. Firay laughed. "Whatever you say, Daphne."

"Ariana! They're over here!"

My head snapped towards the sound of Sage's voice that had abruptly appeared next to me. He sent me a quick grin, sliding down the pew that was suddenly full of people. Ariana came down the aisle next, apologizing as she passed each person. Sage sat next to me, forcing Ariana to sit on his other side, and next to a man who rather resembled a bear.

"You ready for this, Matt?" Sage asked, leaning around me.

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "There's nothing to be ready for. I've attended a wedding before."

"But this is Daphne."

"And this is my Daphne," Mr. Firay responded, holding up our entwined hands.

Sage chuckled, nodding his head. "Touché."

"You guys are so cute together!" Ariana gushed, leaning over Sage so she could see us better. "_Ustedes son adorables_!_"_

"Don't… call me cute like I'm a child," Mr. Firay responded, making a face. "I'm four years older than you."

Ariana frowned. "Fine. Old man."

I laughed as Mr. Firay scowled at her. A sudden silence seeped through pew after pew, causing the room to fall noiseless. Guests were turning in their seats, looking all around them. My gaze met a pair of sharp looking eyes from a young man in the row in front of us. He narrowed his eyes slightly, and I quickly adverted my gaze, turning to Mr. Firay.

"Making eye contact with strangers is so awkward," I muttered quietly to him.

He chuckled. "You're cute, Daphne."

My heart skipped a beat when he leaned in and planted a quick kiss on my forehead. Involuntarily my eyes returned to the spot where the young man I had made eye contact with sat. He was smirking at us. He nudged the person sitting next to him, and she turned around, a pair of equally sharp eyes landing on me. They widened slightly in surprise. She then nudged her neighbor, who also turned to look at me. This time it was an older woman.

"Daphne?" the woman questioned, sounding surprised.

Taken aback, I stared at her with wide eyes. How did she know my name? I didn't know anyone here besides Mr. Firay, Ariana, and Sage.

"You've got the wrong person," Mr. Firay finally responded for me. "This is my girlfriend."

_Girlfriend_. It was silly, but when Mr. Firay called me his girlfriend, a thrill of excitement ran through me. It was like knowing a secret that no one else knew.

The old woman furrowed her eyebrows. "Oh, I'm sorry… She looks so much like the bride though…"

I gave her a small smile. "So I've heard."

After another smile from the old woman, she turned to face the front again. The other boy and girl followed her example, facing forwards. Mr. Firay chuckled quietly, giving my hand another squeeze.

"Watch out, Daphne. You might be congratulated at the reception."

I grimaced. I hoped that wouldn't happen… I still hate being reminded about how much I looked like Daphne. It was weird. But, I was excited for the reception. Weddings always had the best food.

* * *

><p>"Congratulations!"<p>

I turned my head, coming face-to-face with yet another stranger. "Um, you have the wrong person…"

Mr. Firay snickered from beside me as the embarrassed greeter apologized and walked away. I shook my head, taking a sip of my sparking cider. I wasn't allowed to drink the wine— Mr. Firay's orders.

"I told you," he taunted.

I waved him off with my hand. "I don't get why people are confusing us. We're wearing two totally different dresses…" I trailed off, remembering when Daphne first entered the room. It was the only time in my life I could remember when a girl took my breath away. "She looks ten times better than me."

Mr. Firay snorted. "No way."

I smiled at him. "You're biased."

"Maybe."

"Where's Ariana?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

Mr. Firay hooked his thumb towards the dance floor. "Making a fool of himself with Ariana."

A laugh escaped my lips when my eyes landed on Ariana and Sage, who were indeed dancing like maniacs. They were sort of doing the tango… and flamenco at the same time, with a touch of salsa. Those dancing around them were shooting them wary looks every so often.

"Daphne!"

Sighing quietly, I turned around to fend another exited guest away. When my eyes landed on my doppelganger, I gasped. She seemed to be surprised too, because she stopped short, her eyes widening.

"I forgot how much we look alike," she breathed, smiling again. "It's weird."

"Yeah," I responded, feeling shy.

Her eyes dropped to my hand, which was holding Mr. Firay's. She turned her attention to his face, a grin spreading across it. "Matt, I see you finally made your move."

Mr. Firay shot her an embarrassed look. "Shut up."

She laughed. "Follow me, I want to introduce you to my husband."

I sent Mr. Firay a concerned look but he shook his head, taking the lead, and pulling me after Daphne. The three of us weaved through crowds of guests, who all called out congratulations to Daphne, and gawked when they realized there was two of her. Finally we made it to a quiet sport around the food stand, where the groom and a young child were waiting.

The groom, a curly haired brunette, stared at me in disbelief as we grew closer. "Daphne, you didn't tell me you had a twin."

Daphne chuckled, taking her husband's hand. "Terrance, this is Daphne. She's Matt's girlfriend. Daphne, this is Terrance, my husband."

Terrance slowly held out his hand, still taking me in. I quickly placed my free one in his, and he grasped it firmly, shaking it twice before letting it go.

"Nice to meet you," he stated after a moment.

"You too," I murmured, feeling shy again.

"This is Phillip, my step-son," Daphne continued, pushing a young in front of her.

I bit my tongue so an "awe" couldn't escape my lips. The little boy in front of me had to be one of the cutest toddlers I had ever seen. He had curly hair like his father, and the brightest blue eyes I had ever seen. "How old is he?" I asked curiously.

"Two," Terrance responded, putting a hand on his son's head. "His birthday just passed."

Phillip stared at me, a goofy grin spreading across his face. "Hi!"

"Hello," I responded, catching his smile. "I'm Daphne."

Phillip quickly hid behind his father's legs, dropping his gaze. Terrance laughed, giving me a sheepish look. "He's not good around new people."

"That's okay," I responded, still enthusiastic about how cute his son was. "He's adorable."

Daphne flashed me a smile. "Do you like children, Daphne?"

I nodded. "Most of them."

She smirked, sending Mr. Firay a suggestive look. Immediately I flushed, understanding what she meant. Mr. Firay rolled his eyes at her, shaking his head. Terrance looked confused, obviously missing the whole exchange.

"Daphne, do you want to dance?" Mr. Firay suddenly asked, tugging me towards the dance floor. "Let's go."

"Um, but—"

"You too have fun," Daphne interjected, looking smug. "I have to go talk to more of our guests."

Terrance groaned. "But we've already talked to like a thousand people—"

"You're exaggerating," Daphne cut him off, rolling her eyes. "Bye Daphne, by Matt."

I bid the trio adieu, and Mr. Firay pulled me towards the dance floor, where Ariana and Sage were still having a blast. Just as we stepped on the wooden flooring the song changed into a slow, calm one. Mr. Firay gave me a small smirk, taking my other hand in his.

"Perfect timing, right?"

I blushed as Mr. Firay wrapped my arms around his neck and dropped his to my waist. "I feel like you knew the song was going to change."

Mr. Firay rolled his eyes. "I'm not psychic."

"I wouldn't be surprised." My gaze turned back to Sage and Ariana, who were now surprisingly dancing just as Mr. Firay and I were. "Hey, Matt, look."

Mr. Firay froze for a moment. I cocked my head questioningly. He shook his head, staring to move to the music again. "Even though I told you to call me Matt, it still threw me off guard."

"That's good… I think."

He laughed quietly. "I don't know if it is or not."

"Anyway, look at Ariana and Sage. Don't they look cute together?"

Mr. Firay glanced at said pair and made a face. "Don't even think about that, Daphne."

I pouted. "Why not?"

"Sage having a girlfriend? That's impossible."

"You never know…"

Mr. Firay shrugged. "True, but come on. It's Sage."

"You just don't want him to have a girlfriend because—"

"Daphne if you make another gay joke I will not talk to you for the rest of the night," he cut me off, giving me an exasperated look. "I love _you_, Daphne. I'm not gay. Unless you're secretly a man."

I chuckled, trying not to laugh too hard. "No, I'm not. I was kidding, Mr…" I made a face. "Er, Matt."

"I know, but still…"

Without any warning, I moved to my tiptoes, reaching just high enough to quickly kiss Mr. Firay. Once again he was nonplussed. He stood still for a moment, looking flustered. I smirked at him. He gave me a cautious look.

"That's not fair, Daphne."

"You kiss me without warning all the time," I pointed out.

Mr. Firay pursed his lips. "It's different."

"No it's not!"

"Okay," he said with a shrug. "But if I attack you because you do something like that, it's not my fault." As he said the last words, an amused smile appeared on his face.

"Attack?"

He wagged his eyebrows seductively. "You know what I mean."

Warmth spread across my cheeks and I had to look away from him. "You're secretly a pervert."

"I love you."

"I know."

Mr. Firay suddenly pulled me closer to him, wrapping his arm all the way around me, and squeezing me against his chest. "What was that?"

"I love you too," I corrected myself, mumbling into his shoulder.

He let me go, smiling in a satisfied way. "That's much better, Daphne. Much better."

"Mind if I cut in?"

In the blink of an eye I was swept away from Mr. Firay, suddenly in the arms of Sage. Mr. Firay sent Sage and annoyed look, but dropped it when Ariana was suddenly shoved into his arms.

"Partner switch," Sage sang, pulling me close to him.

"We didn't even have one dance," I protested but still wrapped my arms around Sage's neck.

Sage shrugged. "There will be plenty more."

"You could have waited."

"I'm impatient."

I rolled my eyes at him. "Obviously."

"What did you think of the wedding?" Sage inquired, slowly swaying side-to-side with the beat.

"This is a really nice place for one," I responded, smiling. "Daphne looked really good in her dress."

"Do you want to get married?"

"Some day."

Sage grinned, suddenly letting me go. I paused, staring at him curiously. He suddenly dropped onto one knee, taking my hand in his. "Daphne, would you marry me?"

There were a few gasps from around us, and I looked around to see the guests closer to us were all staring with wide eyes. A few of the women broke out into huge smiles, nudging their partners in the side. A blush spread across my face as I glared down at Sage, who was also staring around in surprise. When his gaze returned to my face, he gave me a sheepish grin.

"Say yes!" one of the young women to my right urged.

"Yeah, do it!"

"You'd have to be a bitch to turn him down here."

I smiled wryly, trying my best not to glare at Sage. My gaze shifted, landing on Mr. Firay, who looked extremely irked.

Ariana on the other hand, looked absolutely amused. She was trying her best not to laugh.

"Why is she hesitating?" the same woman that had made the 'female dog' comment whispered loudly.

Now annoyed, I sent Sage a hard look. "Yes, I'll marry you." There was _no_ way I was going to be the bad guy here.

Applause broke out as Sage slowly returned to his feet, scratching the back of his head uncomfortably. A few people came up to him and congratulated him, slapping him on the back. Some of the women sent me wide grins, but didn't come over to me. I didn't blame them. They didn't know me.

Mr. Firay suddenly appeared, going straight to Sage. He stopped about a foot away, putting on a broad smile. "Hey, congratulations, man!"

Sage sent Mr. Firay a heedful look. "Um, thanks dude…"

"You really deserve a slap on the back."

"No that's quiet alright, Chri— Ugh," Sage groaned as Mr. Firay seemingly used all his force to slap Sage on the back.

"I hope you live a long and happy life with _my_ girlfriend."

Ariana burst out laughing, suddenly appearing by my side. I started, turning my head to her quickly. She gave me an amused smile, gesturing to Sage, who was still making a face in pain. Mr. Firay came over to Ariana and me, crossing his arms. After a few more moments Sage came over to, putting a hand to his back.

"Daphne, I think I'll have to call this wedding off…"

"That's too bad," I responded, frowning. "I was really looking forward to it."

He grinned. "Maybe after you and Matt marry and divorce."

"We're not going to divorce," Mr. Firay interjected, giving Sage an annoyed look.

Ariana gave me a secret smile, obviously catching what I did. Mr. Firay didn't say we weren't going to get married.

Sage pursed his lips at Mr. Firay. "You ruin all my fun."

"You're annoying."

Sage turned to Ariana, a grin slipping onto his face. He was one resilient person. "Ariana, will you marry me?"

Ariana cocked an eyebrow. "I don't know. I'm not sure how I feel about men who by women's lingerie in Victoria's Secret for themselves…"

"I didn't!"

"I saw you."

"No you didn't!"

Ariana narrowed her eyes. "Are you calling me a liar?"

Sage's face faltered. "No, but—"

"But what?"

Suddenly I felt someone tug on my elbow, and I turned my head to see Mr. Firay nodding his head towards the other side of the room. While Sage and Ariana were distracted, we quietly snuck away from them. I laughed quietly; a bit surprised we had gotten away so easily. Mr. Firay slipped his hand into mine, pulling me past the rest of the dancers, towards the exit.

"Where are we going?" I questioned as Mr. Firay continued to drag me through the entrance hall.

"To be alone for a moment."

I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. Mr. Firay suddenly made a right, pulling me to a side hallway. "Are we allowed to be down here?"

Mr. Firay shrugged. "Maybe."

The corners of my lips twitched into a small smile. "I don't want to get in trouble."

He suddenly stopped, causing me to run into him. He steadied me, an amused smile crossing his face. "Then I'll make this quick."

"Make what quick?"

He shoved his hand into his pant pocket, suddenly looking a little embarrassed. "Well, you were in the hospital on Christmas, and we didn't really have any alone time when Sage and I came over to your house, so I never got a chance to give you your Christmas present…"

My heart skipped a beat in surprise. "You got me a present?"

"It's kind of both a birthday and Christmas present, since I didn't get you one of those…"

"I don't need anything—"

Mr. Firay shook his head, suddenly thrusting a small package in to my hand.

"Take it, Daphne."

I looked at the poorly wrapped package in my hand and smiled. "You're not good at wrapping things, are you?"

Mr. Firay narrowed his eyes. "Just open it."

"Okay," I responded, sliding a finger underneath one of the flaps so I could open it easily. My mouth went dry when I realized it was a small, velvet box. That could only mean one out of three things. I looked up at Mr. Firay, not sure if I wanted to open it.

He gave me an impatient look. "Just so you know, I'm not taking it back."

My heart pounded in my chest as I slowly pulled the top of the black box up, opening it to reveal a necklace. The pendant was a piece of beautiful, sparking blue gem shaped in a heart. Above the heart necklace was a small diamond, attached to the back that was holding the gem in. The chain was made out of white gold.

"The gem is Topaz, your birthstone," Mr. Firay informed me, ducking his head. "I thought it was funny that it was the same gem on the bracelet that your sister gave you, so I thought, 'Why not'?"

"This looks… really expensive," I commented, barely able to form the words because my mouth was so dry. "It's so pretty…"

"I take it you like it?"

I looked up at Mr. Firay, giving him a crazy look. "Of course I like it! I love it!"

He let out a sigh of relief. "Good. I wasn't sure if you'd like it or not."

Grasping the necklace tightly in my hand, I threw myself at Mr. Firay, wrapping my arms around him tightly. "Thank you, Matt."

He chuckled, slowly rubbing my back. "You're welcome, Daphne. Want me to help you put it on?"

I nodded, pulling away from him, and dropping the necklace into his outstretched palm. He gestured for to turn around, so I did, and I soon felt him pushing my hair to one side of my neck. Then he put his arms around me, lying the pendant face up on my chest, and pulled it tighter so he could clasp it. When he was finished he let the chain drop and the necklace lay against my chest high enough up so everyone could see. I smiled down at it, picking it up.

"Thank you again," I said, turning around to face him.

He smiled, slipping his arms around my waist. "Anytime."

"Should we go back to the wedding?"

"Hmm… I vote no."

I cocked my head to the side. "Why not?"

Mr. Firay smirked. "I'd rather spend it out here with you. Alone."

"Oh," I responded lamely, feeling my face heat up. "Um, I guess that'd be okay. But Ariana—"

"Has Sage to play with," Mr. Firay finished for me, bringing his head closer to me. "Right?"

"Right," I mumbled. The proximity between us had my heart racing and I tried to calm it, hoping he wouldn't hear it.

"Right," he responded simply, pushing me back a few steps so that I was against the wall. "Now we can stay out here and…" he trailed off, bringing his face closer to mine.

Immediately I closed my eyes, preparing myself.

"Admire your necklace."

My eyes shot open when I felt my pendant being picked up. Mr. Firay gazed at it, a smirk playing across his lips. I stared at him, a little disappointed. When his eyes met mine, he cocked his head to the side.

"You look a little let down."

I blushed. "I— I do not!"

"What were you expecting me to do?"

"Nothing!"

"Kiss you, perhaps?"

"No!"

"Like this?" he asked, quickly leaning forward and kissing me.

I blushed as he pulled away. "No…"

He chuckled. "I have a feeling you no what I'm going to say."

"_Daphne, you can't lie to me_."

Mr. Firay nodded approvingly. "You're getting the hang of it."

Rolling my eyes, I grabbed the front of Mr. Firay's tux. "Why don't _you_ shut up and kiss me."

He raised an eyebrow. "It seems our roles have been reversed."

"Seems so."

"I guess I'll let it slide for tonight," he responded with a mockingly reluctant look. "Do as you wish, Ms. Grimm."

I smiled. "I plan to."

* * *

><p><em><span>For The First Time<span>_

* * *

><p><em>I thought I knew adventure<em>

_That when it came to danger and peril_

_It was normal procedure_

_But then I was suddenly pushed into the centre_

_Of the menaces that came with having a devil_

_Of a teacher_

…

I never was the rebel kind

Always acting as the perfect one

Until the thought crossed my mind

To fight back and please none

And when my mother died

I did not realize

My troubles had barely begun

…

_How could I have known?_

_What you would bring into my life._

_So many feelings that would moan_

_And ask to rise and be alive_

_And finally confess and convey_

_All those things I couldn't say_

…

When I first saw you

It was like seeing someone back from the dead

Before I even knew you

I decided to take advantage of your appearance

Not knowing that I would later dread

The day you would become suspicious and find out by chance

…

_It took a long time to grasp_

_What my emotions truly were_

_But even then I couldn't admit the clasp_

_You somehow managed to make, good sir_

_On my heart_

_Believe it or not_

_It was only the start_

…

The pure innocence inside you

Only made the astonishment and puzzlement grow

How especially after you knew

Acted as if it didn't matter

And cared more than ever

Despite how low

I had gone

Softening the blow

Of disgrace and failure

This dream you have drawn

Makes me feel for the first time

As if I actually belong

…

_That mask of arrogance_

_Is simply something you hide behind_

_The past sorrows are but clear evidence_

_Of the gentleness, I know is inside_

_You can try to lie_

_And pretend you are bad_

_But the truth is you're scared_

_Of being considered among the damned_

_If you'd just listen to me_

_You might understand_

_What you feel is _

_What I feel_

_Only take my hand_

…

Protecting you seems like a full time job

But it's one that I'm proud of

And don't mind at all

Except that I fear the day

When harm will come

Far be the time

When my enemies cross the line

And cause you to fall

…

_Happiness, bliss and joy_

_This is what I feel now that the danger's gone by_

_Finally alone_

_To go about and satisfy_

_Our desires that was different when we were both shy_

_Because now_

_For the first time_

_I have someone who comforts and makes my spirits fly_

_For the first time_

_Someone_

_I can call mine_

…

* * *

><p><strong>AN.**Welp...that's the end of FTFT...*flood flood*...

YARR! We have a sequel on our hands! Yippeeee! And it'll be my first sequel for FF! Ah! I'm so excited. ^^

Thank you very much for the amazing poem, SweetShireen! It's really a piece of art, don't you guys think? By the way, if some of you don't get it. The thoughts switched from Daphne to Firay and back and forth. :)

Last Review Replies for FTFT (Signed In People, Do Not Worry -I Will Get To Replying To All of You, Too):

tianna190: That really means a lot to me. Sincerely. :D Thank you so much for brightening my day!

PenguinLoverGurl: Lol. That is freaky. I know it's wonderfully gravy –it's MB, a-durr. :DDD I'm glad you're loving the last book as much as I am. I know I'm on the third update list. Lol, well here's your update! Freaky, freaky! :D 2 reviews is all right. And I wouldn't care if you sent 10 reviews as long as their full of complete thoughts…well, I probably would get annoyed if they were too long, but…ANYWAYS! :D Sage is fun. :D …YOU ARE SUPER SMART! HIGHFIIIVE! Aw, that's true. I hope to see you in the sequel! WOW! Those are great suggestions! I'll probably use one of them, but change some of the words around. :D Thanks so much!

TheAfterShockNLI: Lol. :D Actually, I thought snowplows were built on the snowmobile (unless I interpreted Wiki wrong…), but I know they're not the same thing. :D Yeah…I'm not good with this stuff, lol. Well, have you seen  
>Disney's "Mickey's Christmas"? Well, Goofy was driving one of those snowmobiles or whatever and he plowed right into Mickey's yard and Mickey and Pluto went under for a long time until they suddenly popped out. So, that's where the avalanche idea came from. That's all right. :D You didn't say the chapter sucked horribly with mean words, so it wasn't harsh. :D<p>

killer bunnies: Lol, that's okay. :D Hahah –if you had died, I would've down. I have Nico di Angelo on speed dial. ;D Lol, you did. Thanks so much! :D Have you gotten the book now? Lol, true, true. *Sage rubs elbows with you* LOL! Thanks! Nerf guns are awesome. Or Puck. I can imagine Puck getting a snowplow and having Henry get stuck in it. Heehee! FINALLY. Someone get the That's What She Said joke. :D Thanks!

(): He got her a present in this chapter. :D Satisfied? And the joke was: "So, Mustardseed, what lessons have you been teaching Daphne?" Thanks!

emma: Aw, thank you so much! Awww...I'm tearing up. :D Thank you so much. Lol, that's true. I'm reading the books right now, actually. :D No, thank _you. _:D

Countrygirl: Sage is gravy. Lol. XD Starting it soon, don't worry. :D …"I Love My Teacher"? Um, well, I really want something like FTFT, BEBE, LPLP, etc, but I'll keep that in mind. Thanks for the suggestion! :D

And PenguinLoverGurl: Dudes, that was so awesome! This girl calculated...I don't even know how to summarize it in one word. Here:

_Seriously? That's like, a little over 1,000 reviews in nine months, which equals up to about...*does math in the air* a little over 111 reviews per month, which, with about eight (every Fri. and Sun.) updates each month, about 14 or so reviews every chapter. But, since that rate has increased, that's just the mathematical probability. (Whoa...*staggers backwards* TWO big words in one sentence...gotta tone it down a notch)  
><em>  
>IS THAT CRAZY OR WHAT? You must be super smart because I probably wouldn't have figured that out. XD<p>

Of course, I couldn't forget _all_ you guys: _yellow.r0se, Evil Scrapbooker, twilightfunatic, LoudButStillQuiteDeadly, Goffygoober/xXOnceUponADreamXx, Cat, , killer bunnies, RockstarGurl4444, sophie, Krissie, Daughter of Iris, Alexie122, FaroreGrimm, Doglover231, Neon blue space, Cheesy Dork, TheRealRed, squirrel101, Curlscat, LLAMACORN RIDER, warisha (when you were an anon.), ANannyMouse, Angelica32G, The fLaMiNg ReViEwEr, Hazel Daughter of Pluto, Epiphany on Toast, Puffypenguin, TheyCallMeRed, The-Smartie-Blondie, Crystal Salamander, cutie pie, ZiaMikal, Meow soft, ArtemisRide, anon, warisha's brother and sister, KENDRA1212, Krys and Mel, Kiss Me Slow, Rosebud143, Fanficlover, Gothic-Emo-Bunny, star, shiree, Hellokitty, emma, arisha, Lazy ol' Krystynn, Asian Caucasian Invasion, Meowsofi, mlbv-mlbv-grimm, SweetShireen, Eleni, Countrygirl, Dat Girl, Thatonestalker/Thatonesgfan/That onesistersgrimmfan, Skioldr, karatequeen78, Astoria, Mai/mazberrypie, MELUVBOOKS, Velika Silvertounge, forathousTerranceears, crazyluver, Rockinjellybeans, Penguinsaremylife, Noneofyourbusiness, GoodetoKnow, Hannah, andrea, tasleem, Somerandomperson, CuppyCakeluvsU, Poptart-reader, harrypotterfan, sistersgrimmfan, CupCake, Zenobia, CTerranceGirl101, alexiandria, booksonclouds, Beautiful Mistress, Not soLittle Girl, Isa, Isabella, vickitoriya, Lizzy1809, Emilie, longliveharrypotter, GrimmGirlLove, Ftft3, why should i tell u my name, Person u dont know, sistersgrimmfan, luna, coco, Airene Archerway, Archer Princess, Sarcastic Freaks, Puckabrina-Percabeth-Fax101, lazypenname, prideisawesome, Nature16, Miss Astoria, puckabrina-FAXfan, oah ehm ghee, Longlivethecookiemonster, Carina Carstairs, Kathie, decline, Nerdy birdy 12, DontMesswiththePrincess, Alice A.J, nothin'likeME, unheard, Chatouiller Mon Cornichon, emowriter, Paranormalcy Love, Puckabrinaluva13, and tianna190._

I actually took the time to count how many (took a long time) readers I had, and I counted 120 different readers. That's…freakin' awesome. ALL OF YOU GAVE ME 1,000 REVIEWERS! And to any new readers after, thank you for reading. :D

Again! Thanks so much! I hope to see you all in the sequel! ^^ I have another surprise:

_With the arrival of two troublesome new students, Daphne and Mustardseed's secret relationship starts getting rocky, and Mustardseed is finding it harder to stay away from Daphne in school. To top it all off, Sage has a big surprise for everyone._

There you go. :) So if I ever post something with that in the description, you know it's the sequel. I'll be glad to have old readers and new readers come read the sequel, but be forewarned: **Daphne and Mustardseed are together. **So it will be mushy. Fluffy and mushy. Like mashed potatoes. I've already gotten a few reviews from people saying, "UGGGH. THEY KISS LIKE EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER. UGH. THIS STORY SUCKS SO MUCH NOW. STOP ITTTTT." or something. I won't be mad if you don't appear in the sequel. If you really don't like romance, you can start reading other FanFictions (trust me, there are much more gravy SG fics written by more experienced authors). And actually, if you came reading FTFT for action, there will hardly be any in the sequel except for -ah, I'm not saying _anything. _;D I'm so evil.

Oooone more thing to add.

_**Book 9 was so gravy that I was bawling for almost half an hour; I kid you not. I stayed upstairs in my house for that time because I didn't want my parents to tease me (as for Hannah and Kian, they saw me crying, then went back to watching TV). You'll love it! There's like two epilogues...ish. Not really but...sorta. :) I won't say anymore except -you have to read it before you get 'too old' for books. It's so amazing. Really. And I'm not sure if MB's read NMW and NGHC, or if Curlscat and Ayns and Sky are psychic, or what, but GEEZUMS: I found so many similarities to parts of the books to those FFs! ^^ All right. I'm done. I shall resume bawling my eyes out.  
><strong>_  
>Thanks for being here, you all! I'm so lucky to be on FanFiction.<p>

-Lara

PS. You're perverted. I know you were thinking something dirty when you read those first opening lines to the epilogue. ;DDDD Lol! (Well, most of you were. :3)

...

...

...

...

**Stats of For The First Time (5/14/12):**

**Favorites: 37**

**Alerts: 38 **

**Visitors Total: 6,103**

**Hits Total: 24,189**

**Words: 267, 343**

**Sequel: Thursday, May 24th, 2012**


End file.
